Battle
by Kristina Marie
Summary: Four years after arriving on Arus, Lotor again rises to threaten everything. Will Arus recover? Will the team survive! Stay tuned.... Critiques are most welcome and encouraged!
1. Disclaimer

My version of the Voltron world

My version of the Voltron world.

First, let me say I do not own any of the Voltron characters, world, or accoutrements. All original characters come from my own mind. The side bar stories are also mine and any resemblance to other works or authors is purely coincidental.

That should take of the formalities.

First, I skip right over the part where the new castle emerges from the ground. In my mind, the old castle was simply rebuilt/refurbished as time allowed.

Second, the characters are all older than originally depicted. Even when watching the series as a child, the age of Pidge always bothered me. Ergo, his is three to four years younger than the rest of the crew. I place the force between the ages of 22 and 24. The reason behind this is simple. It takes time to learn to fly fighters, even if you have flown as a child and have a private pilots license. My best friend's brother joined the Navy and flew fighters. It takes years of training to fly fighters.

Third, the princess is an odd combination of experience and innocence. I do not believe you can live on a war-torn world and not have some idea of what suffering is and how to deal with it. Having said that, I also believe her people would have tried to keep her sheltered to some aspects of life. Virginal princess and all that. I also place her age at 19 to 20 when the team arrives. The story takes place about four years after the team originally arrives, so she would be between 23 and 24. Hunk, Lance, and Keith between 26 and 28, and Pidge about 22 or 23.

Fourth, Cady. She is insisting on her story being told the way she wants it told, so keeps sneaking in as a more prominent character than I originally planned. She does not want the role I had intended for her, so there will be several interludes so Cady can tell her version of things. As many of you know, sometimes the character wins.

Fifth, no ghostly Alfor. Although Allura may hear the voice of her father in her head, as many people who have lost their parent do, there is no visual accompaniment to it nor can he give advice beyond what she already knows in her heard and mind.

There are probably more deviations from the traditional story, but those are the main ones. I will try to put segments up as quickly as possible. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated as this is the very first time I have put any of my writings up before a general and unknown audience. Even a note saying hurry I want to know what happens next would be greatly appreciated. That said, thank you for reading. Enjoy! I know I am!


	2. Lotor is coming

"There can be no question Lotor escaped and has build a new armada. What remains in doubt is what he will do with it." Coran handed the data pad to the captain and let him scan what little information had come from Galaxy Garrison.

Keith, pilot of Black Lion, Chief of security, High Commander of the Arusian forces tossed the pad on the desk between he and Coran and sighed. "When are the new recruits from Garrison due to arrive? We may have even less time to train them on the lions than I would like."

Coran shuffled the papers on his desk until he found a copy of Galaxy Garrison's latest update in their request for backup pilots for Voltron. "Four of them should arrive within the week, but the fifth pilot will be delayed at least three standard months. The Lieutenant's replacement is on medical leave due to injuries and so another one must be found."

Keith smiled ruefully, "And with Garrison's record of red tape, realistically we are looking at closer to six standard months until the fifth pilot arrives." He shrugged and picked up the data pad to examine the profiles of the pilots set to arrive. First, Lieutenant Jr. Grade Kara Hargrave, who would train with Lance on the Red Lion. She had set speed records on the final training course at the academy, and had continued to improve her piloting skills in the years since her graduation. Perhaps she could even give the current pilot of Red Lion a run for his money. Looking at her record, he could see she had accumulated some impressive commendations for bravery under fire, and had received the personal thanks of the ruling committee of Bajeran for saving several member of the committee from a Drulish assassin.

Next came Lieutenant Jr. Grade Ulrich Grunson, assigned to Yellow Lion. He came from Jewel, a heavy gravity planet. His compact frame was heavily muscled with dark hair and eyes, his intelligence scores belied his looks. Ulrich was an expert in munitions, and weaponry of any kind. He was responsible for development of some of the Garrison's newest advances in weapon technology. Keith hoped he and Pidge could work together to increase the potency of the Lion's weapon systems. Ulrich maintained his pilot's training and a side note in his file indicated he believed one could not develop weapons without knowing how to fly the vehicles for said weapons.

Ensigns Jerimiah Manner and Nieve Jenkins would pilot Blue and Green lions respectively. Both were fresh from the academy and graduated in the number one and two places. Manner had studied rural and urban redevelopment and his final paper showed a shrewd intellect in how a society could rebuild after war. Coran and Princess Allura felt grateful to have lured him to Arus. His knowledge would greatly benefit the rebuilding efforts. Jenkins had flitted from major to major during her academic years. Graduating with honors, she fitted the description "Jack of all Trades, Master of None." The only thing constant was flying. Jenkins had racked more flight time than any other cadet in her graduating class and had become known for her aerial maneuvers. Jenkins preferred small easily mobile craft trading damaging power for maneuverability and would be a perfect fit for Green Lion.

Keith closed his eyes for a moment and rubbed the back of his neck. Four new pilots and less time to train than he could hope plus a wait on the fifth member of their team. He would have to ask Pidge to send the delayed Lieutenant the simulator package for Black. It would have been better for the five to train together on the lions, but Keith would thank whatever Gods or Goddesses listening for FINALLY having backup pilots for four of the Lions.

Bringing his mind back to the man in front of him Keith brought up the second topic of the day. "Graduation from the Arusian Military Academy is next week. The Princess would like to be on hand for the first graduating class since the Doom attacks. I think, due to Lotor coming back on the radar, we should adjust our security plans somewhat. This would be too good an opportunity for him to set back the rebuilding of the military significantly, and we cannot assume he is too far away to wreck plans. I know the information says he is at least two months out and lurking, but we cannot verify the information and do not know how out of date it is. Reluctantly, I would ask the ceremony to be moved to the castle ballroom where we have better control over the environment and security."

Coran nodded slowly in agreement, "I concur, Captain. I will leave the arrangements to you and security. Now as to the training schedule for the new pilots. . ."

The two men moved on to more mundane topics and concluded their meeting 15 minutes later. Keith excused himself when his alarm sounded to head off to Lion practice. As the planet and its citizens had rebuilt, the castle population and government had grown to accommodate the increasing needs of the people. Keith and Coran had discovered if they did not meet early in the mornings for their briefings, 'emergencies', dignitaries, or any of the dozens of other interruptions during the day would prevent them from meeting timely. Reluctantly, Keith moved Lion practice to later in the morning to give him that time to meet with Coran.

Of course, the rest of the team had cheered when the announcement had come. Lance was overjoyed as he put it, "Not to have to leave a warm comfy bed so early, or a warm comfy body!"

Hunk was just glad to have time for breakfast before the 7.30 am practice. Pidge and the Princess just enjoyed the extra sleep time.

Keith secretly liked having practice later, although he would never admit it to the team. It meant spending a little extra time with Cady. She never complained, but he knew she wanted more time with him. When Lotor had first disappeared, Cady had become accustomed to spending many hours every day with Keith. She routinely accompanied him on short patrols in Black and sat in on every meeting Nanny would allow. With Lotor's appearance, more people had begun to make demands on Keith's time and finally Princess Allura had told people in no uncertain terms that the Captain would be unavailable during certain hours of the day. It was nonnegotiable and she would brook no arguments on the score. Only one councilor had dared argue. He now served as a liaison to one of the most desolate communities on Arus.

Keith smiled at the memory. No one else said a peep, and the princess had earned Cady's thanks as well as Keith's. When he had hesitantly tried to thank her, Princess Allura had merely looked at him, "We need to take the opportunity to spend time with our loved ones before all hell breaks loose. Who knows what will happen in the next few months, but Cady should have as much time with you as we can spare."

In the last few years, he had watched the princess grow into a monarch in which her people prided, a pilot of excellent caliber, and a woman beautiful on both inside and out. She put her own needs last and her people first. Princess Allura would work herself into the ground for her people. Nanny and Keith had developed a very good relationship and colluded together to keep the princess from doing just that. Since the team had arrived four years earlier, Magda had moved from her role as Allura's nursemaid and nanny to a surrogate mother and caretaker extraordinaire. Not only did she watch out for Allura, but she watched over the team. Her responsibilities had grown with the recovery and she now ran the domestic side of the castle leaving Allura the ability to focus on government, recovery work, and defense.

Keith's role had changed as well. What had initially started as a short-term mission had changed into a semi-permanent post. Shortly after arriving, the conflict with the Drule empire had exploded throughout the galaxy. Galaxy Garrison had realized the advantage of having part of the empire focused on Arus. It was a tactical decision to leave the five pilots on the planet. It equated the most result for the least investment and freed up battalions to focus on other areas. Though he understood the tactic, the way they were often cut off from supplies and reinforcements often grinded on Keith. The five of them remained the only trained pilots until this new graduating class on Arus for over four years. In that time Keith thought they could have at least sent some replacement pilots for training and to ease some of the burden of being the ONLY pilots for Voltron. Personally, Keith had always thought this had shown a lack of foresight. It was only with the blessings of the gods and goddesses that the Princess had shown aptitude for flying the blue lion when Sven was hurt. If not for that, Arus would have fallen. The young captain always shuddered and sent up a tiny prayer of thanksgiving that had not happened.

Mentally pushing aside the reverie, Keith hurried to the Control Room. The other four pilots were already gathered and waiting for him.

"Ready, team?" Keith threw out as he headed toward the shaft.

"Ready, Captain," replied the greed pilot.

"Yes, sir," from the yellow.

A nod from the blue.

The young captain paused as he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. There he saw the red pilot with a large red canvas hat with a two foot white feather sticking jauntily out of the left side. Said pilot was bowing. If one could call it a bow. Lance had his right foot stuck out straight in front of him with the left leg bent. He had bent at the waist over his right leg with the hat across him and twirling on a finger. "But of course mon capitan!" he said in a very bad, very fake French accent.

Keith stopped and stared. Then blinked. "Um, you may rise, Lieutenant."

Lance straightened and placed the hat at a rakish angle back on his head. With great aplomb he took several running steps toward his shaft. Sweeping off his hat in his left hand, he bowed again and then grabbed the handle in his right, striking a pose as he descended.

The other three pilots looked at the dumbfounded expression on Keith's face and burst into laughter. Non-plussed, Keith raised an eyebrow which sent them into more gales of laughter. Behind the captain, the crew in the Control Room started snickering. He turned to look and found not one of the personnel could stop their laugher.

"Well, Lance did always have a flair for the dramatic." Watching his team nearly falling down with laughter, a smile hovered at the corner of his mouth. "I suppose two can play at that game." With that the captain made an even more elaborate bow to the princess with an imaginary hat and strode to the portal. Pointing one hand at the handle bar, he turned back toward the pilots, "To infinity and beyond!" With that he leapt gracefully onto the bar, holding the pose. Behind him he could hear the sound of a body hitting the floor as the laughter erupted behind him.

It took nearly ten minutes before the green, yellow, and blue pilots joined the black and red ones for practice.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Over the next week, Keith stepped up the training program for all the pilots under his command. Which meant every one on the planet. The military academy was running in three shifts to step up the training of the classes behind the graduating one. It went without question the current crop of pilots would not be sufficient to match the threat Lotor was bringing to them. Simulators and fighters ran constantly. Pilots spent two hours in the air training, then landed to trade places with a classmate. They had a short break to grab a meal and a shower, then reported to the classroom for theory or tactics study. Following tactics, the students went to the simulators to apply what had just been studied before another meal break and a return to the skies for a second live session. The pilots-in-training had a longer break after their second air training to let them absorb the days lessons and to refresh mind and body. It was expected after their second break they would take another session or two in the simulators and time for independent study before sack time.

Captain Kogane dropped by to drill students and deliver lessons on tactics as often as possible. He rotated with Lance, Pidge, and Hunk. Automated cameras taped each session so students could review at their leisure. It also let the students on the rest shift to watch each lecture and not miss anything. Holographic lectures did not give the same oomph as live lectures, but were better than trying to learn by texts alone. The graduating class took second shift as their rest cycle with the idea they needed mostly practice at this point. The students were being pushed close to their breaking point. The commander kept in close contact with the instructors. They were allowing the students a free half day every five days. More was not advisable if they were to be battle ready within 40 days. The captain did not want to take the chance of Lotor showing up earlier. Initial intelligence reports had indicated he was a minimum of 60 days out. This gave a margin for safety.

All manufacturing had been redirected toward war. From small munitions and ground to air defense to ground tanks and fighter craft, the entire planet was participating. Evacuation shelters were being restocked and checked and double checked for readiness. The domestic herds of animals were being moved to unpopulated areas and released into the wilderness. When the latest threat had passed, it would take time to gather the animals, but better that than losing the animals all together.

This time Arus had warning of the coming invasion. This time would not find them easy targets. This time they would fight. This time they would win.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . …. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Keith sat down with a thump at his desk and scowled at the stacks of data pads sitting on his desk. Looking at his chronometer, he blinked to see the late hour. At this rate, he would net only a couple hours a sleep for the next month. Sighing, the captain interlocked his fingers, turning his palms outward, slowly raised his arms above his head in a stretch. Lowering his hands he tipped his head back, eyes closed to stretch his neck. Slowly, he tipped his head forward and then left and right. Finally he tipped his head sideways to touch each ear in succession to the appropriate shoulder.

The he looked at the desk again. In the few minutes it took to stretch, he could swear more data pads had just magically appeared in front of him. Maybe he should draft a secretary in the interim. Ramping up for the coming of Lotor was taking more hours in the day than he had. Shaking his head, he counter acted the idea. It would take more time to train someone than to just do it himself. By the time he had trained a secretary, Lotor would have arrived and it would become a moot point.

Keith yanked his thoughts back on track. He did not have time for woolgathering. Time for work. As he started in on the pile, he absently reached out to buzz the kitchen. With so many people in the castle, it ran on a skeleton crew in the night hours to accommodate all those who had the swing shift. He ordered the Arusian version of espresso and, as his stomach reminded him he had yet again missed dinner, a sandwich.

Fifteen minutes later, a knock on the door indicated the arrival of caffeine. Pressing the switch on the desk to open the door, Keith did not even look up when the server entered the room. "If you would please set it on the corner of the desk, I would appreciate it."

"Excuse me, Captain, but Nanny has given the kitchen staff some specific orders, sir."

Pausing and looking up, the young man actually focused on the person who had come in the room. The young man looked rather nervous as he stood by the cart, which contained a large covered plate, two smaller ones, and two carafes. "Pardon me?"

Pushing the cart over to a table and chair, the young man began setting up the dishes. "Nanny ordered whenever you finally arrived back at the castle we were to bring up the dinner she had made. She also order whoever delivered it to see that you ate every bite on pain of double shifts for the next ten years. She also said to inform you, and I quote, 'Captain Keith, you WILL sit down and eat your dinner at a table like a civilized person. You will NOT work during your meal and I expect every bite to disappear from the plate,' end quote." He smiled ruefully at the captain, "So, if you will please come to the table, I would be very grateful as _ really _do not want double shifts. Oh, Nanny also sent along a book for you to read at the table." He had finished setting the table, complete with place setting and a small center piece. The book was placed next to the plate and the server pulled out the chair for the captain. "Sir?"

Chuckling, Keith stood and came to take the seat. "What is your name?"

"Wyler, sir. Thank you for not getting me in trouble with Nanny!"

"I have faced Nanny's wrath too many times over the years to let someone else face it as well." He looked on in appreciation as Wyler whisked off the cover to reveal one of his favorite meals; pork chop with noodles, gravy, and green beans. Sniffing appreciatively, he paused only to say a quick blessing and then cut into the meat. Meanwhile, Wyler had filled one glass with water and a second with a light white wine. He noticed Keith's raised eyebrow and answered the implied question.

"According to Nanny, you have been working too hard and need a little relaxation. She promises it will complement the meal." Wyler nodded as he finished the table. "If you do not mind sir, I will just sit and read my book as you eat. Nanny left specific orders we were to not leave the room."

Swallowing around a laugh, Keith took a quick drink to clear his throat. "I do not think Nanny trusts me to simply eat without working. Please make yourself comfortable, Wyler." As Wyler sat in one of the chair in front of the desk, Keith turned to the book Nanny had left him. Wyler had left it set it a holder to make it easy to read without holding it and the stylus propped up next to it. Taking another bite, the captain turned on the reader to see what Nanny had left him. He chuckled as he saw she had taken no chances. It was a book by one of his favorite authors who wrote mysteries with crazy twists and turns and heroes who often turned out to be the villain. With a smile, he took a sip of the wine, and found it a light, semi-sweet drink which did indeed perfectly complement the meal.

Engrossed in the book, Keith did not pay much attention to Wyler. He had long since learned to ignore people in the background. Wyler in the meantime followed the orders Nanny had left him and stayed unobtrusive in the background. He did refill the Captain's plate and wine glass. The captain had nodded his thanks, but had kept his attention focused on the reader in front of him. Wyler efficiently cleared the table and set desert down in front of the captain. Nanny had specially made it for the captain to tempt his appetite.

Word in the kitchens said she did not like how many hours the captain worked and how little he ate. One of the staff members had overheard a discussion between Nanny, Coran, and the Princess about how ragged around the edges the captain looked. They plotted to keep him from running himself into the ground. The word spread like wildfire, and it became an open plot to take care of the captain. He had given so much to Arus, the staff felt he belonged to them. They would care for what belonged to them.

Keith absently took a bite from the plate in front of him and then stopped in surprise as the flavor hit his mouth. He looked up to find Wyler smiling at him. "Nanny wanted to tempt your appetite, sir," Wyler said.

"If she keeps this up, I may just not fit into my flight suit!" Keith laughed, but he dug in for another bite and returned his attention to the book. The desert, a special Nanny concoction tasted fabulous. She started by making a five thin layers of heavy cake-like pastry. Then she soaked it in a good brandy for several hours. Once soaked, she stacked them with a raspberry filling between each layer. The brandy-soaked pastry was served with a warmed dark chocolate ganache. It took all day to prepare, and usually Magda only made it on special occasions. Keith felt touched she went to such trouble for him.

Wyler cleared the plates and put them on the cart. "Captain Kogane, if you would care to repair to the couch, Nanny sent along one of her special teas to finish the meal.

Replete and comfortably drowsy, the captain looked at the piles of data pads on his desk. Wyler noticed the direction of his gaze, "Please, Captain, I am following orders.

With a last guilty glance, Keith allowed Wyler to direct him to the sofa. Sitting, he took the reader the young man handed him and set it in his lap. Taking the mug of tea, he sipped and smiled appreciatively. Nanny had made him a mint-like tea. It came from a plant which grew only in the northern climes of Arus. Fortunately, it had escaped destruction because of its remote location. According to Arusian herbal medicine, it promoted good health and restful sleep.

Settling in again with the story, he told himself he would return to work as soon as Wyler left.

Walking over to the music controls for the room, Wyler called up the program of lullabies Nanny had ordered. She had determined the captain had not slept a good night's sleep since the news of Lotor had come. The new pilots were due to arrive on the morrow, and she knew the captain would grow even busier. Coran, Nanny, and the Princess had determined Keith would have one night's rest whether he liked it or not. They had also cleared the captain's morning schedule to let him rest and spend time with Cady. The Princess had commented they would beg for forgiveness rather than ask permission.

Quietly, Wyler finished clearing the table and began straightening the room. He glanced over every now and again at the captain. When the mug was empty, he placed it on the tray. Ten minutes after that, he saw the pilot's head begin to bob as he fought to stay awake. He walked over to the couch, "Sir, perhaps you would be more comfortable in your bed?"

Keith looked up at Wyler, trying to make sense of his words. He had suddenly felt incredibly tired and could barely keep his eyes opened. Nodding in agreement with whatever the young man had said he stood and followed him to the bedroom. Keith allowed Wyler to guide him to the bed, when had it been turned down for sleep, he wondered. Sighing he lay down on the crisp sheets and closed his eyes. He heard Wyler say something, but it did not connect as he drifted to sleep.

Dimming the lights as he left the room, Wyler returned to the main room to collect the cart and return to the kitchen. He had made sure to turn off the alarms in the captain's room as per his orders. Exiting, he turned off the lights and keyed the door to lock behind him. With that, he returned to the kitchen, whistling at a job well done.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The next morning, Keith woke slowly. The alarm had not yet sounded, and he did not want to even look at the clock. Once he looked at the clock his damnable mind would wake and that would be the end of his sleep for the night. A minute later he grumbled to himself. It was no use, he would have to peek at the clock in the hopes he could actually catch a few more winks. Oddly enough he actually felt rested. Opening his eyes, he raised himself on his elbows to look at the time. He blinked and then looked harder. 0913? In the morning? What about the alarm?

Damn, he had missed his morning meeting with Coran. Double damn, he had a scheduled lecture at the academy which started thirteen minutes ago. With a look around the room, he noticed no Cady and indulged in some colorful language as he headed to the bathroom. Speaking of Cady, where was she? He turned to walk over to his desk where he saw a note.

_Keith,_

_Cady is with Lance._

_We decided you needed some rest and took it upon ourselves to see you had some. You cannot take care of the rest of us if you do not take care of yourself. And since you are too stubborn to do that, we decided to do it for you._

_Coran cancelled your morning meeting and we rescheduled your lecture at the academy for 1300. Lion practice will be at 1530. (Yes, Pidge gave me the times, you _know_ I cannot keep military hours straight!)_

_When you have showered, Nanny said to give her a call, she will save breakfast for you and you had better _NOT_ skip it!_

_I hope you had a good sleep and have a restful morning. You are off-duty until the lecture at the academy! Do not even attempt to do anything other than spend time with Cady or a book! You have been warned._

_--Allura_

_p.s. Do not bother to look for the data pads, between Coran, Pidge, and I we should be able to handle all the reports and will give you a summary tomorrow. _

Laughing, Keith could just hear Allura's tone of voice. He knew when she would not take 'no' for an answer. After four years, she knew him better than he knew himself sometimes. Whenever Allura thought he worked too hard, she simply gave him no choice but to take some time for himself and Cady. Several times she had simply kidnapped him to spend the day vacationing with Cady and often with Allura in tow. The princess had learned if she just ordered him to take a day off, he would sneak in work anyhow.

After the first defeat of Lotor, Allura along with the guys had plotted his first real vacation ever. The night before she had claimed Cady for a sleep over in her room. Lance had shown up with a bottle of Arusian brandy and the next morning he had woken up in a bed and breakfast on the far side of Arus. The three of them, Allura, Cady and himself, had spent a week just relaxing and playing. It had felt magical. Just like a family vacation should be.

Whoa! Dangerous thoughts there boy. Back to today!

So Keith decided to do just as instructed. For once, he took a leisurely shower, enjoying just standing and letting the water beat down on his shoulders and back. As he stood, he thought about what he and Cady could do for the day and the smiled. They had not had a picnic in a very long time. Even if the weather did not cooperate, they could 'picnic' in the rec room. She would love it. They could even take a horse ride before hand. Keith started to whistle, deciding to invite Allura along. Spending some time with his girls, what a great way to start the day!


	3. Allura thinks back

As the team reemerged from the tunnels after lion practice, a waiting communiqué informed them the two ensigns joining the team would arrive in the early evening

As the team reemerged from the tunnels after lion practice, a waiting communiqué informed them the two ensigns joining the team would arrive in the early evening. Cheers rose from the group. Finally they would have someone to spell the on Voltron and could return to a more normal deployment schedule. After four years of 24/7 duty, seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and hope gave the team a boost they needed. Fewer mistakes and injuries due to pilot so tired they saw double. A chance to really heal their bodies after injuries or illness instead of aggravating dangerous conditions. Perhaps even time for purely social functions where they did not double as body guard or have to worry about an alarm sounding to interrupt a date.

The long term plans for Voltron involved training a batch of Arusian fighters and return the tradition of Voltron to the rightful people. After this upcoming battle, they would be able to evaluate the new graduating class for those with the interest, drive, and most importantly ability to pilot the giant robot. Captain Kogane had pushed the new recruits hard, but could not be everywhere at once. They would rely on the Garrison pilots for now, and look to begin a training program within a few months. If all went well. Keith had brought the princess around to his way of thinking. Rebuilding could wait, education could not.

Arus had started rebuilding, but much of the planet still had to hand draw their water, did not have adequate sewers or aqueducts, means of powering anything beyond the most basic things like lights. Every town had modern communications stations, but few individual homes had connections. In many ways, Arus would benefit from the need to rebuild literally from bare ground. This would give them an opportunity to modernize without sacrificing much of what made Arus unique.

Lance, Pidge, and Hunk quickly went to make themselves presentable for the arrival of the newest members of the Voltron force. Allura detoured to request Nanny prepare a welcoming meal before heading to her quarters. She no longer fount it odd to have an interior room within the castle. The small suite had its own individual bathing chamber, small bedroom, and living area but certainly not on the same scale as her old apartments. After Lotor had spirited her out of her old rooms with the large windows and balcony, Keith had instructed the staff to move her belongings to a new chamber he had chosen. It had less damage than many other rooms in the castle because of its placement within the interior of the castle. It looked over the small inner courtyard, but had no direct access to it.

The castle walls blocked her view of the sky, and had missed standing out on her balcony watching the sun set and the stars emerge from the darkness. Allura had fought hard on the move, not wanting Lotor to dictate where she could and could not live. Keith had listened while she raged about her rooms for nearly 20 minutes. Finally, he cut off her objections when she started repeating herself for the third or fourth time.

"Princess, your belongings have been moved to the suite next to mine. There they will stay and the staff have orders to move anything that appears in your old suite back to the new one. If you will excuse me, Cady and I have a date." With that he had bowed and left her standing in the middle of her old suite without a rejoinder.

Smiling at the memory, she touched the panel to open the door. That particular argument had struck her dumb and silenced all her objections. Sleep only a door away from the man she adored? It took no time at all before she had the new rooms ordered how she like them. Cady had given her a picture of the stars she could no longer see. Four years later, it still hung as the centerpiece in a collage of prints and pictures along one wall. Cady had given her other pictures over the years as her skill improved, but the first one was given with love and insight.

The first night in her new room, Allura had felt a little out of place. She had bustled around moving a small ceramic piece here or there. The walls looked rather bare and still smelled of fresh paint. Her beautiful furnishings; her canopied bed, large wardrobe, and vanity would not fit in the new rooms. They had found some mostly undamaged furniture for her use, and Allura knew it would be some time before new furnishings could be made or found. She had very little familiar around her and strangely enough, felt a little 'homesick.'

Just as she was working herself into a funk, the princess heard a knock on the door. On the other side stood Keith with his daughter in front of him. He leaned down next to Cady's ear and whispered something.

The little girl had looked at the princess and then held out something in front of her. "Happy new rooms!" she had said.

Allura had reached down and taken a large piece of paper with a drawing on it. There was a lot of blue on the paper and colorful blobs on top with spikes sticking out from each of them.

Cady looked proudly at Allura, "I made you stars."

"You made me stars?" the princess repeated, a little confused.

"Uh huh," Cady nodded, "Cause you like stars."

Allura looked at Keith for a little help, "Cady likes watching the stars on your balcony with you," he shrugged a bit, "so she decided you needed stars in your new rooms to match the ones in your old one."

Carefully, Allura put the picture down on a table by the door and then held out her arms to Cady. She gave the girl a large squeeze, "Thank you, sweetheart! I love the picture and I am putting it on my wall right now."

Cady wiggled down and walked over to the wall and pointed to the center. "Here."

"There," replied Allura. She stopped as Keith cleared his throat behind her. He held out a roll of tape. She smiled, he was always prepared. "Thank you."

For the next several minutes, she and Cady fussed with the perfect placement of the picture. Before she knew it, Keith had excused himself, Cady was Allura's first visitor and she felt less out of place. A short time later, the captain came to collect his daughter for bedtime. Cady promised Allura she would bring more stars for her room so she would not miss them so much.

That night began a great relationship between the two girls. One who desperately needed a mother figure other than Nanny, the other who needed someone who needed her care.

Looking at her wall, she sighed. She adored Cady with everything in her. At seven years old, Cady did not remember a time when the princess did not live next door. She had a personality much like her father. Allura had lost count of the hours they had spent worried over Keith and his latest trip to the hospital. In the beginning, Cady would stay in one of her 'Uncles' rooms until Dr. Gorma released Keith, but as time passed she started staying with Allura as well. During the longer hospital stays, Cady would split her time between her father, the princess, and her uncles.

As more people came to the castle for work, Nanny had arranged for child care for the staff's children. Many people needed to work, but the traditional two parent family had disappeared when Zarkon had first attacked. Many of the children of this generation had only one parent and often a relative to care for them. As people emerged from the caves and began rebuilding, Nanny found a teacher and a small school was established in the castle for the children living there. Cady attended the classes held in the morning. The afternoons were divided among Coran, Nanny, Allura, Hunk, Pidge, Lance, and Keith. In the process she was acquiring the most amazing education.

From Coran she learned protocol, law, and diplomacy. Nanny taught her manners, work ethic, and cooking. From Allura she learned poise, dignity, and negotiation as she watched her beloved princess during meetings with the council, foreign dignitaries, or the Arusian leaders. When Cady had first started coming with Allura, some of the leaders and dignitaries had looked at her askance. The little girl had quickly proven to be invaluable in keeping people from losing their cool and their willingness to be more flexible. No one wanted to yell or scream in front of a child, especially one who would look at them with wide grey eyes should they start to raise their voice or whine. In one of the first meetings she had attended, a mayor had started complaining about the lack of progress in rebuilding and how his town needed more than the others. After ten minutes of his ranting Cady had politely raised her hand like they did in school. It took another minute before the mayor noticed her. "What do you want little girl?" He asked huffily.

"Can you please stop yelling so loud? You are giving me a headache and I cannot hear what you want 'cause you are too loud." She said with a child's logic.

The man had looked at Cady and blinked. Then blinked again. Then sat down and did not say another word. After that, he became known for his brevity and modulation of tone.

Allura smiled at the memory and then turned her thoughts to Cady's uncles. They continued to teach her as they had from the day she was born. From Hunk, she learned how to build and repair. On her first birthday he gave her a child's tool set and every day he could had played mechanic with her. To Cady, it was all a game of take it apart and put it back together.

Pidge brought his love of problem solving. With Cady he played puzzles, logic games, and mazes. He constantly created new computer games with her. In return Cady forced Pidge out of his too serious role and let the young man come through. It was not unusual to find them both on the floor with old fashioned crayons, feet in the air as they created mazes and pictures.

From Lance, she learned laughter. He taught Cady how to relax and have fun. They did silly things together like have backwards clothing day or making funny noises with their hands. Lance spun crazy stories with improbably characters using silly voices and sound effects. He also taught her how to play tell jokes and laugh at herself. What a precious gift he gave her in that!

That left her father. . .Keith. Plopping on the couch, Allura gave herself permission to think about her knight in shining armor. Love. Keith gave Cady unconditional love. Through his example he taught her honor and right from wrong. He taught her to have high expectations for herself, and to strive to reach the goal. They spent time together every day, just the two of them. Often they could be found in the gym practicing either Yoga or Tai-chi. When time permitted, Keith and Cady would invite Allura to spend time with them in the forest, on a horseback ride, or just relaxing in the rec room. The princess adored this family time and over the last four years, it had become a staple of her day. Allura would join them as she could for their tai-chi practice although she readily admitted Cady would soon outpace her. Of course both had started the practice as soon as they could walk. It helped to have generations of practitioners in the family.

Her smile became a frown as she pondered her dilemma. Somehow she had to show Keith she could fit in permanently in their family. In her fantasies, Keith discovered how much he loved Allura and they would marry and Cady would be her daughter in truth. They would have more children and build a fabulous family. Shaking her head, Allura pushed the thought aside and forced herself to stand and ready for the arrival of the new recruits. Time enough to dwell on the Keith question later.


	4. Gorma and Keith

Keith shook his head to clear the sudden blurring of the repair bay as he attempted to land. Too many attacks. Too little sleep. Too much adrenaline pumping through his body had left him grey with exhaustion. Even his hair, usually unkempt looked limp and tired. Shaking his head again to clear it, he landed with an ungraceful and bone jarring thump. _"The academy trainers would give me demerits for that one," _he thought and powered down to let the technicians begin their mad scramble to fix Black so he and Keith could return to battle.

Closing his bloodshot eyes for a moment of relief, the Captain knew nothing else until a hand gently shaking him brought him back to awareness. Opening his eyes, he looked into the worried visage of Dr. Gorma. Why was the doctor here? Oh, yes, Keith had requested the doctor to meet him in the repair bay. Why had he done that? Oh, yes, he remembered. Keith tried to straighten up although his body seemed unresponsive. "Dr. Gorma," he started and then stopped. Even his words were slurring now. He had to return back to the sky soon, but in his state he would only endanger the rest of the team.

Dr. Gorma watched as Keith's eyes closed once again, his body at the edge of endurance. Even the captain's well known will-power (stubbornness) could no longer sustain him. The doctor doubted the captain had more than a couple hours of sleep in the last few days, caught in bits and pieces as he came in only to recharge his lion, have repairs made and take his stims and calorie shake. Many of the repairs were patch jobs, enough to keep the lion flying. Gorma had seen the outside of the lion and knew if they made it through this wave of attacks all the lions would require extensive repairs, and he knew little to nothing about them. That did not even count the time he had come in to be stitched, bandaged, and his right foot set and air-casted. All nine of the lion pilots' bodies needed rest and recuperation, but until relief in the form of Garrison troops appeared, they would have to endure. Gorma knew two of the new pilots were flying with mild concussions, in addition to sprains, strains, bruises, contusions, and hastily stitched-up cuts. It was miraculous that no one had received any serious injuries that would prevent them from flying. After three days of continuous warfare, the lion pilots were showing signs of battle fatigue. Not to the extent they were showing signs of impaired judgment, but it would not be long now. Battle fatigue. There was something the doctor had hoped to never see again. In short, it would decrease fighting efficiency. Symptoms ranged from slower reaction times, to confusion and fatigue or exhaustion. There was nothing more than what they were already doing to alleviate the symptoms. As much rest as they could spare, keeping up their caloric intake, and short-acting stims to combat their slowed reactions.

Sighing he looked at his patient, already knowing what his request would be. It went against every bit of medical training and his instincts were screaming at what a bad idea it would be, but did either of them have a choice? The stims could no longer keep the captain alert and functioning. The fact he had fallen asleep twice in the space of five minutes showed that. As the first day of battle had merged into the second day, Gorma had increased the potency of the stims he gave the captain, making sure he was washing them down with as many calories as he could consume in the short breaks Keith allowed himself. Since the stims increased heart rate, his metabolism also increased.

Sighing again, Gorma poked his head out of the cockpit to request the items he needed and asked how long until Black was ready to fly again. He returned to stand by the captain and picked up his wrist to check his pulse. Gorma removed his helmet, and Keith did not even stir. The dark circles under his eyes from exhaustion looked much the same as two black eyes. Even with the increase in calories, the captain's cheeks had started to look hollow. Unzipping the flight suit, Gorma checked bandages around the captain's chest, where he had cracked three ribs from a particularly hard landing due to a RoBeast. The doctor continued his examination, careful to let the pilot have as much sleep as he could. The bandaging was holding, as was the temporary cast around his right foot. As he waited for the items he had requested he pondered what had happened.

Lotor had been detected just over a week ago moving with a massive fleet toward Arus. Castle Control had put out a mayday to Galaxy Garrison, knowing they did not have the resources to defeat the threat. Garrison had returned a priority message that they were dispatching as quickly as possible everything they could spare. It would take a minimum of 10 days for the first ships to arrive. Lotor would arrive in five. They would have to hold out for five to seven days until help arrived. Over 120 hours. Possibly 160. The only thing that had let them hold out so far was the newly graduated class of the Arusian Air Force, the fact the Princess had build up the military hardware as quickly as possible, the arrival of most of the second team for the lions, and the man sitting before him. Though the captain did not know it, he had become an icon and a beacon of hope for Arus. To many, he seemed touched by a higher power. It had become legend if Captain Kogane flew, Arus would take the day.

Gorma thought there was some truth to that, but not for the reasons the people believed. Keith left as little to chance as possible. He devised contingency plans for his contingency plans. Which was what brought Dr. Gorma here. As Lotor's forces drew nearer and the team received their first glance of what they would truly face, Keith knew this would be different from all other battles. There would be no down-time, no breaks. Lotor would be able to throw squadron after squadron and a succession of RoBeasts against them non-stop. It would be only a matter of time before fatigue would take its toll on the Voltron force, the air and ground forces, and all the support staff. Keith had spoken with Dr. Gorma about what to do when Keith reached the point where he would no longer be able to stay awake and alert to let the teams against Lotor's forces.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Keith had knocked on Dr. Gorma's door and entered when bade to do so. He sat in the chair opposite of the good doctor as directed and they exchanged greetings.

"Coming straight to the point doctor. We have to hold out for a minimum of five days against Lotor's forces until Garrison's fleets begin to arrive. I would like to plan for seven. I have already mapped out a schedule for the other four lions and their deployments, but here is where I need your help. The pilots of the Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow will fly in four-hour shifts. What I need to know is if you have some light stimulants which would last about that long to keep them alert. Four hours is too long, I know, to be in a dogfight, but we have little choice. Shorter flights just will not work. They will need to be able to consume their calories quickly and hit the sack for recovery time."

Gorma tapped his data pad, bringing up a file and then looking at the commander. "Ration bars can be made to my specific instructions which would pack enough calories and nutrients for each segment of time. I will have a nurse on duty at the repair bay for as long as possible to track their fitness and fatigue levels. There are some light stimulants we can use, but I prefer to hold off as long as possible." Hesitating, he looked at the commander, "One technique I have heard used, although it would not be my preference, is to give each person a temporary IV port. When they come off their shift, they can be directed to a sleeping chamber and a TPN solution attached. I would prefer to do that only as a last resort, or only in the latter days if sleep becomes an issue." He tapped his stylus against the data pad in thought. "Is there any way you can have a third shift for the lions?"

Keith shook his head, "We are pushing the new team as fast as possible in their training, as it is. Lotor's ships are less than a standard day out, and there is just no time!" Running a hand through his hair, he slumped back in the chair and then rubbed his temples with his right hand. He had been pushing both teams as hard as he could without fatiguing them early. They were all calorie loading and Nanny was loading their meals with as many vitamins and minerals as she could. She had taken to bringing Keith his meals because if she did not, he inevitably missed at least one as he tried to simultaneously to train the new recruits, plan the defenses, work with the air force to coordinate their strategies, work on the castle defenses, move all non-essential personnel to underground shelters, planning evacuation procedures, and the list continued. Realistically he needed more support personnel, but Galaxy Garrison had been spread thin and could not afford to send anyone, and there was a shortage of trained personnel on Arus. Nanny had even gone so far as to slip a mild sleeping aid into Keith's evening meal at Dr. Gorma's insistence. He had slept nearly seven hours, the most sleep he had in a week. Keith admitted he needed the sleep, but was frantically trying to finish preparations for the morrow. Focusing back on Dr. Gorma he realized he had been lost in his thoughts for several moments and the doctor was waiting for him to continue. "It would be more dangerous to have less experienced pilots than tired pilots in the lions. More dangerous for the rest of the team as well. It takes time to learn to work together in them, and once again, time we do not have."

Dr. Gorma nodded, "I understand. We will do what we have to do to keep the lions in the air." He gave Keith a sharp look, "We have discussed four of the five lions. What of the Black?"

The captain straightened and looked Dr. Gorma in the eye. "It must be kept flying at all costs. Black is the most powerful of all the lions, can take the most damage, and has the most firepower."

"Who will function as the second team leader, Captain?"

"The only other person who is qualified to fly Black is the Princess. She is needed in Blue."

Dr. Gorma sat quietly looking at the young man in front of him. The doctor had patched Keith up more times than he could count. He had watched the captain grow into a true leader and hero of the people. Gorma knew what Keith was asking of him, and studying him realized the captain realized the potential cost. He closed his eyes, knowing what the commander would request would be against everything medical school taught, but also knowing there was no other way to protect Arus. Sighing and opening his eyes, he looked at the captain and spoke very quietly and formally, "How can I be of assistance, Captain Kogane?"

Keith let out a sigh of relief. He had thought the doctor would put up more of a fight, and was glad to escape one more battle. "I need to be able to stay alert and awake until the threat to Arus is lifted. We need to buy 5 days minimum for Alliance assistance. As soon as Lotor commits to Arus, Pollux will be able to release help to us, but until we know for certain Lotor will commit…..pardon me doctor, I am taking a tangent here. I need to be able to fly for 5 days. Perhaps 6 or 7. What can you do for me?"

"What other parameters do I have to work with Captain? Will you take any breaks? How long will you be in the air at any given time?" Dr. Gorma pushed back his conscience with a shove. Arus survival would take precedence over the Captain's. This was war, and causalities happened.

"Breaks will be few and far between. Black must fly as much as possible. I will come in for necessary repairs and armament only as needed. Repairs will be as quick as possible to keep the lions in the air. Hunk and Pidge have as many people replicating parts as fast as possible for the lions, the air fighters, and the ground-assault vehicles. The hope is if something happens, come in and replace the whole panel. We will have other people working on repairing parts after they have been replaced. It will not work as well with the lions, but again, I am rambling. Forgive me, Dr. Gorma. The short answer is as few as possible and as short as possible. As to how long I will be in the air, the answer depends on you, Doctor."

Gorma nodded. "Fair enough. Of course the quick answer is stims. You would have to come in for regular doses. As your body fatigued, we would increase the potency. Of course we will have to figure out how to load your body with calories. The stims I have in mind accelerate metabolism and you will burn calories even faster. Hmm, let me talk with one my nurses about this. She specialized in nutrition. In the meantime, you need to be eating as much as possible as long as we have time. Ask Nurse Rader for some of our high calorie ration bars. In addition to what Nanny is feeding you, try to eat three to five of these today. Take them with you in Black and eat as many as you can while in the air. Bites here and there will make a difference." Keith nodded as the doctor continued. "You will need to come in every four hours, I would think. You may be able to stretch it longer at first, but no more than that. I can provide you with one booster shot in case of an emergency which will prevent you from returning in a timely manner, but you WILL come in, young man. Do I make myself clear?" Keith nodded and opened his mouth but Gorma waved him quiet. "You have been my worst patient since the first day you came, but I want your word you will be here ever four hours once Lotor attacks. In addition you will take a sedative and sleep for at least ten hours tonight as well. Do I have your word?"

The Captain studied Gorma for a moment, "I give you my word I will take your sedative and will come in every four hours barring unexpected circumstances. Will this take me through seven days?"

Dr. Gorma looked down at his desk and was quiet. "No." He finally said. "With your level of activity, and what you will be putting your body through coupled with no real sleep, the stims will work for two days, three at the outside."

Keith nodded, "I see. And then?"

The doctor stared at his hands for several long moments without answering. Internally he was battling his instincts as a doctor with the real need of the planet. Without looking up, he began speaking, "Once upon a time, a long time ago, on a planet very far from here lived a good king."

Looking at the doctor, Keith took a breath to interrupt, but realized that Gorma was would not hear him. Settling back in his chair, he took the moment to relax and listen to what Gorma was trying to tell him.

"His father had united many independent tribes to form the beginning of a civilization. The king's father had taught him from the day he took breath that a good king put his people before himself. This had been taught to him by a very wise woman. She had been a seer and predicted the rise of a very great civilization starting with the king's father. Should they work hard, they could bring peace to the planet and prosperity to all the people living there.

"The king's father listened to the seer. He himself was not the brightest of men, but he believed in the seer's vision. The rest of his life was spent starting to build a united people to give to his son to continue the vision.

"The seer had told the king's father one more thing. In the time of his son, or his son's son a great darkness would emerge from the South to threaten everything they were trying to build. They could defeat the darkness but it would take a great sacrifice on the part of the king. He could save his people at the cost of his life. In order to do just that, the seer would give the king's father a secret which would allow his son or his son's son to defeat the darkness. The king's father hesitated. He did not yet have children, but he would be condemning him to death before he was even born. Looking across the land which the seer had told him would house a grand civilization and what she promised for his people, he agreed. A ruler put the people first.

"It came about as the seer had said. When the king's father died, he had united many of the warring tribes. The king continued his father's dream and like his father, taught his children from the day of their births. When the king had been ruling for over a decade, the darkness rose from the South as the seer had told. Strapping on his armor he kissed his wife, his children, and went to do battle. A good king puts his people first. A great king sacrifices all he is for his people. His wife did not send him off with tears or recriminations. She had known this was his possible fate from the day they met. The king's daughter knew that she would soon rule the people. She let fall only a single tear as she bid her father goodbye. She knew he would hold back the darkness for the people and they would sing his name until time itself stopped. Stepping forth proudly he called for the men and women who had trained all their lives for this moment. They left behind their families and loved ones, knowing most of them would never return. Their loved ones sent them off with cheers and love, knowing only a few would return.

"A great battle was engaged and for ten days the king and his people fought. The darkness pushed forward and the people pushed back. At times they despaired the darkness would overcome but the king always rallied the people and drove the darkness back. The battlefield turned to mud, tinted red from those who died. The wounded did not stop but fought until they died. If they could take out even one more enemy before succumbing to their wounds, it was enough. Never in time has a more courageous people fought, knowing they outcome.

"After ten days the leader of the darkness finally came forth. He roared his challenge to the king. Wiping his brow the king stepped forward. He looked at the darkness, weary to his soul and knowing what would come next. Taking the moment to rest, he answered the challenge of the darkness. All fighting stopped as they listened to this great king. As he spoke, his people felt uplifted and refreshed. They stood straighter, stronger, and in solidarity. This is what he said.

"Darkness can never defeat what bands together behind a common purpose. We stand strong together and the darkness fades before us. One person stands before the dark with a single light. Another joins, and another, and another. Soon the people form with a purpose so bright the sun appears dim. Today we make our final stand before the darkness knowing it is already defeated. We stand with purpose, determination, and hope. We stand strong in our beliefs. We willingly sacrifice all that we are for all that will come after us. In the face of this, the darkness is nothing." Bending down he used a finger to draw a line. The soldier to his left drew it a littler further as did the soldier to his right. Soon a single line separated the hoards of dark from the king and his people. Softly he started a rhythm of sword against shield which was picked up by his people. He again looked at the dark and pointed at the line. With the back drop of the sounds of weapons against shields he shouted at the darkness and all heard him. "Over this line the darkness SHALL NOT CROSS!" Without prompting every soldier of the king rushed forward to finish the defeat of the darkness. Not one doubted their victory. They rushed to their deaths. No one knows how long the battle lasted only that the king's people held the line. They would not let the darkness cross. If one of the people fell, another stepped into his place. And the darkness shrunk. Tiring, the king looked up and found the leader of the darkness. Wounded, tired in body, and knowing the end was near the king found the strength to raise his sword and with a mighty yell, ran the darkness through.

"The darkness looked at the sword through its body with surprise. It fell and the darkness fled before the light of the king's people. The king looked around him. He smiled to the soldier on his right and sighed. It was his last breath.

"The few remaining soldiers gathered around the king and reverently carried him back to his people. As was the custom of the people, they buried him as he had come into the world in a field where his body would nourish the crops which would nourish his people. The people had been shocked at his appearance. His hair had turned white, his skin hung loose on his once strong frame. He looked withered as though he was a man of great age instead of one in his prime. It had been the price to be paid for saving his people.

"The seer had given them a great gift which came at great cost. The secret has been passed down through countless generations. It is called Agappon."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The doctor finished his story and remained quiet for a few minutes. "This story has been passed down from before the beginning of history of the planet Obreck. Their planet's monarchy holds the tale as truth and accordingly each monarch lives by the tenants set down by their first kings and queens. Each generation learns from birth the cost of ruling and the requirements of rule. They have the civilization the seer of the tale promised. By tradition, their military maintains the highest standards and no finer one can be found anywhere. Even the Drule do not bother with the planet. They have a tradition of learning and knowledge and guard their technology fiercely. I digress. The culture fascinates me. You probably wonder why I chose to tell you this tale."

At Keith's nod, he continued. "Agappon exists. It works as the story suggests and asks a very high price for its use. Very few people of heard of Agappon and fewer still those who allowed to take it off the planet. It has some very interesting properties. Unlike many elixirs and other medicines it does not degrade with time nor does it strengthen. Once the monks of the planet prepare the elixir, it remains as it is until used. As a doctor I have no explanation for this phenomena. Growing up on a planet with a rich magical tradition tells me that is all the explanation I need.

"Many years ago, our Queen Callia cultivated a relationship with the reigning monarchs of Obreck. While she did not have the full 'sight' of many of her line, she often knew what would be needed. Thus her insistence Alfor duplicate the knowledge of the planet. She also convinced the monarchs of Obreck to give her a supply of Agappon. It has never been used but has waited until a time of dire need, as per her instructions." Rubbing the back of his neck, Gorma sighed. "I believe this is the time she meant. Although we have had situations of difficulties in the past, never before have we faced such overwhelming odds. When the stims fail, I can begin giving you the herb. In legend, the king chewed the herb constantly. Research has shown Agappon releases a compound which was then absorbed into the body through the mouth and though the breath. Think of it like champagne. The bubbles evaporate and are absorbed into the blood stream through breath. It must be absorbed slowly and does not work through ingestion. You will have to take it two ways. I will give you a series of patches to use. They will lose effectiveness over time, much as the stims have. However, this helps to alleviate some of the more serious side effects of taking Agappon in its purest form. When these cease to function, you will have to chew the root, or at least let it sit in the side of your mouth. As it breaks down, you will have to expectorate the juice rather than swallowing it. Once you begin chewing the root, it will sustain you for ten days. This is the good news." Dr. Gorma fell silent, glancing back at his hands and then the young captain sitting before him. As he contemplated the man before him, his thoughts wandered. More than any other single person, Captain Keith Kogane had fought to bring Arus to a place of prosperity. He had touched the lives of nearly every person on the planet. More than that, the captain was willing to sacrifice everything he was for a planet that was not even his. Shaking his head, he brought his thoughts back to the present.

Keith looked at him gravely, letting the doctor take his time to explain. He knew what he asked the doctor fell outside the parameters of patient-doctor relationships. Keith also knew that if they failed, all of Arus would pay the price. After a long pause, he finally prompted the doctor, "And the bad?"

"In the best of circumstances, nothing extended rest and good home-cooked meals can cure." He looked wryly at the captain, "And by rest, it means long sleeps, little activity, and little stress. A vacation, to put it succinctly, Captain."

Keith shrugged and grinned. "I have heard of the theory. Sounds boring to me."

Gorma chuckled without mirth. "Actually, once the Agappon clears the body, you would not have any choice. Without exception, the person collapses into a coma-like state. The time in the state depends on how long the duration of Agappon use, the amount of damage the body takes, and the general health of the person at the end of use. Let me back up a bit, Captain." Gorma paused and closed his eyes gathering his thoughts. "Agappon does several things. First, within several hours of starting Agappon the body stops the digestive process. The energy required is diverted to other uses. The body then begins to burn though stores of fat, then muscle as needed. The stories of the skin hanging off the bones of the king? He had burned through most of his muscle mass, and the loose skin was much like an obese person who has lost a significant amount of weight.

"Second it works much like adrenaline in the system, keeping the reflexes sharp and the mind working quickly. It does not give you abilities you already possess, mind, but it does keep fatigue induced issues at bay. We do not know how exactly it works, the root seems to defy any analysis we try to do. Synthetic compounds which match the root, do not yield the same effects.

"Lastly, and this seems in direct conflict with its other affects, Agappon lowers blood pressure and slows bleeding. Often people who take Agappon feel cool to the touch to others. It seems that the Agappon diverts the energy usually directed to the care and maintenance of the body to the functions of mind and reflexes. Regulating temperature takes energy, so Agappon reduces it. Digestion takes energy, so it is eliminated.

"So where does this leave us when you stop taking Agappon. The less time you take Agappon, the easier and faster the recovery. Realistically speaking, there is a break-even point at about 72 hours. After that time, the survival rate begins to drop. After 96 hours the chance of survival drops to about 10. No one is known to have survived the Agappon crash after five days of usage. When you stop using Agappon, the abuse and neglect of the body hit all at once. To be frank, in addition to whatever damage occurs while in battle, you will be battling withdrawal symptoms, the ramping up of body functions again, and the adrenaline crash. That is in a healthy person, Captain." Gorma took a deep breath to give the Captain the worst of the news. "You cannot take Agappon from the start because you would have zero chance of surviving. If I give you the stims, and you start Agappon later, you will have a 40-50 chance if you can take it less than 72 hours. More than that and I would put it at 25, IF you take no damage during that time. If you are seriously hurt, I cannot put odds on survival."

Keith sat back quietly and looked at the doctor, then stood to stand before a picture of Arus from before the war with Doom. Dr. Gorma sat quietly to give Captain Kogane a chance to absorb what he had been told. The usually energetic man stood quietly studying the picture. Finally he turned with his head bowed. "You will speak with Allura about Cady staying here?"

Gorma nodded, his heart breaking. Neither needed to say what lay between them like the proverbial white elephant. The chance of surviving five or six days of major combat without injury was impossible. Put in the added factor of knowing Lotor would be gunning for Keith in return for all the imagined slights over the course of the war and the continual disruption of his plans to kidnap the princess, and both knew Keith would be signing his own death warrant. Keith continued, "I have already prepared all the paperwork necessary. It is in the bottom drawer of my desk in a sealed file with your name on it, Doctor. There are also some personal letters I would ask that you distribute when the time is right. I would also request you do not let anyone else know of what we plan. We both know there is no choice if Arus is to survive."

Again, the doctor had no choice but to nod his head. Keith glanced at the time and gave the doctor a wan smile. "If you will excuse me, I think the rest of the preparation can be passed off to others. There is a young lady I am going to spend time with in the gardens." With that, Keith turned and walked to the door, pausing only a moment, "Take care of my team, they will need you." The captain continued out the door, already activating his communicator to begin handing off the final tasks of preparing for the next day.

The doctor sat at his desk for a few minutes longer. He finally rose with a sigh and called the staff together to finish preparing what the lion pilots would need for the next five to six days. He would not diminish the sacrifice Keith made but would ensure that his team and Cady would survive. Once he gave out the final instructions to his nursing staff, sent a runner after Keith with the nutrition bars, and looked to see that all was going according to his plan, he sat down to do some research. Time was tight, but Gorma was determined to keep Keith with them after this latest crisis had passed. Arus could ask for no truer King than Captain Kogane. _A good king puts his people first. A great king sacrifices all he is for his people. _So the story says. Gorma was damned if Keith would be remember only in story. He would save the captain, no matter what.

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Dr. Gorma stepped outside of Black to check with the crew how long the repairs to Black would take. He wanted to give the captain as much sleep as possible. At this point every minute would count. When he had to wake the pilot, Gorma would have him cram as many calories into himself as possible. Once the Agappon was in his system, he would have only a matter of hours to absorb as much as possible. The word came back Black would need two hours to before putting back into the air. Welding work took time and there were some areas of severe damage.

Returning to the cabin, Gorma hit the controls to flood the cockpit with UV rays to cleanse the cabin, and rotate fresh air into it. He then lowered the pilot's chair into a reclined position. No sense in the captain waking with a stiff neck. Keith did not even stir.

A nurse came in with a clear box with several items. First was the Agappon distillation. Keith would take his first dose orally via a dissolving patch on his tongue. There was also several patches in the box, as well as a clear solution on an IV drip. Taking out a numbing agent, the doctor gently rolled the sleeve of the captain's uniform and swabbed a small area. While he waited for the compound to work, he busied himself setting up the IV bag on a portable stand. While he knew that a nurse could accomplish this, Gorma felt that he could personally care for the captain when he made such a huge sacrifice for Arus. Besides, he needed a break from the hospital where the causalities were starting to increase. He made his staff take breaks from the intensity of dealing with people's pain. It did not make sense to Gorma not to afford himself the same. A tired or overwhelmed doctor made mistakes. He would return to the hospital, if not refreshed, than at least able to look back into the pain filled eyes of those young men and women who fought for freedom.

Gorma sent the nurse away. He would deal with the captain himself. Pulling out a needle, the doctor found and quickly inserted it into a vein and then followed with the IV port. With ease of long practice, he attached the concentrated TPN solution.

The captain slept.

Settling into a passenger seat, Gorma pulled out a data pad and began updating his patient charts. The repair crews would give him a heads-up when the repairs were within 20 minutes of completion. Until then, Captain Kogane would sleep and his body absorb the nutrients of the solution. Gorma made a note to tell the captain of the slight change in plan. Even though he would not be able to eat as such, a communication from Obreck had given the doctor some much needed hope.

After Keith had visited his office, Gorma had placed an emergency communication to Obreck telling them of the situation and asking for any additional information they could provide. Just a few hours ago, a call had come in from the planet.

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Gorma had just emerged from surgery where a page was waiting for him. "Dr. Gorma, sir."

The doctor had felt rather distracted and did not particularly want to be interrupted, there were too many people needing his attention. "Yes, what is it?"

"A communication from Obreck is on stand-by for you. They were informed you were in surgery and told us to let you know they would be waiting for you and please come as quickly as possible." Message delivered, the page waited a reply.

"Of course. Have them put it through to the secure terminal in my office."

The page nodded, turned, and ran to deliver the message. The princess used pages except in emergencies. The war had left many orphans and resurrecting the page tradition gave them purpose and a place to live. They learned protocol, timeliness, patience in the course of their duties. The pages were exposed to many cultures and peoples. As they grew older, they trained to fulfill other roles which called for their talents. Several were at universities on other planets training for diplomatic work. Some remained in the castle as domestic staff, some were in the military academy on Arus. All were fiercely loyal to the princess and to Arus.

Gorma hurried to his office, not bothering to change out of his surgery clothes. He would need clean ones later and did not want to keep Obreck waiting any longer. Entering his office, he sat down and waited for the scrambled communication. Sitting back the random thought crossed his mind that even if the enemy monitored this conversation, it would not make much sense.

A face came in view and Gorma greeted the person. "This is Gorma. Thank you for waiting."

"Kavar here. After what you have told us, we could do nothing else. For us, the king has come to life again. This time he will not die, but live." The face in the screen looked determined. Kavar had the pale pink coloring of his planet accompanied with bright red hair. His eyes were a pale blue and serious. On Earth or Arus he could pass for a native with a sunburn.

Gorma took a breath, nodding. "Thank you." The simple words were filled with heartfelt thanks and Kavar knew the sentiment behind them was more powerful than could be expressed verbally. This would bode well for the captain's survival.

"When you presented us with this problem, we were overwhelmed with volunteers to try and find a solution." Kavar began. "We tried several different experiments, and found that if you can continue to give him nutrition infusions with every booster dose, the demands on his body for energy will diminish. It will not completely void the effects of the Agappon. For those who have taken the Agappon with the infusions, the recovery time has decreased by 60. Those who took Agappon for three days stayed in a Coma for less than one following cessation of dosing. I am sending you the blueprint for a compound which has been most effective."

Gorma was stunned. When he had sent the problem and his questions, he did not expect this! "Kavar, I honestly do not know what to say. No one took any harm, did they?"

Kavar had already begun to shake his head, "No. All were volunteers and all knew the risks. None have any permanent damage." He smiled, "I must say, your request invoked a regular boom in the study of Agappon. You shook us out of our reverie and gave tradition a good kick. Obreck has never looked at changing how it is used or to diminish the effects. The seer told us there was a cost and we have always accepted that. Of course, medical science has advanced to such a place as she could not imagine." He looked over his shoulder, "Good, the information we have has been sent. We will have someone watching for any communications from you should you need anything further. I will be available for you at any time. Please let us know the outcome."

Gorma nodded and the screen darkened. Obreckians never gave formal good-byes especially in time of conflict. As their tradition decreed, they sent everyone off with no tears or recriminations. As the data came though Gorma's eyebrows raised, this could make the difference! He would not tell the captain that. No sense in distracting him now. Quickly he sent off instructions to create the compound sent as a priority. The captain should be coming in soon, and Gorma did not think stims would work any longer.

Returning to surgery, Gorma left instructions to be notified as soon as the Captain called for him.

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Shaking his head, Dr. Gorma tried to focus on the patient logs before him. It seemed a monumental task. He could not keep worry for Captain Kogane out of the forefront of his mind. Already the strain on his body was showing. Adding Agappon into the mix would only make things worse. He would have to send a follow-up question to Obreck. He stood again to check on his patient who had not moved nor twitched. Gorma checked the pulse which remained slow but steady. The captain maintained one of the slowest resting pulses of anyone he had seen. From the little he knew of the captain's background, he had been very active from an early age. Wellness of body and mind had been emphasized in his background, Gorma surmised, as Captain Kogane raised his daughter in a like manner. The arrival of his child had surprised everyone in the castle, except Coran and Magda. He had arranged with them and with Galaxy Garrison to escort his daughter to join him on Arus once it became obvious it would not be a short-term mission as originally thought.

Cady had charmed the medical staff from the first time she had insisted on staying with her Daddy. She had been just four years old the first time Keith had been seriously hurt since her arrival. The captain had been on a patrol when he received word of a cave-in trapping some miner trying to reestablish mining operations. It had turned out to be a trap by Lotor to eliminate the captain. The commander had escaped, but not without breaking several ribs in the process. Inevitably, Lotor had released a RoBeast. In the ensuing battle, on of the broken ribs had penetrated a lung. In true Kogane style, the captain did not tell anyone the extent of the injuries. He had been smart enough to not try to return to the castle via the tunnels, realizing hanging from a line would only worsen things. Of course, rather than summoning a medical team to his lion, he tried to walk to the hospital. One of the castle staff found the captain leaning against a wall, gasping for breath one arm wrapped around his chest.

A medical team had been summoned, and the captain rushed to surgery to repair the lung and set the broken ribs. When they found him groggy after the anesthesia, trying to leave his bed, Gorma had given him the option of staying in the hospital sedated, or just given pain medication. It had come out the captain was worried his daughter might be scared without him and he did not want that. When Gorma suggested a cot, the captain visibly relaxed and let the nurses help him back into his bed. The doctor did not give the commander a sedative, but did give him something to help him relax. Combined with a pain reliever, Gorma hoped the captain would sleep through the night.

When his daughter arrived, her care for her father charmed all the nurses and staff. She became a regular fixture around the medical ward, even when her father was not a patient. As she grew older, she came to keep the children treated there company, and visited her uncles when they were hurt.

Glancing at the time, the doctor forced himself to sit down and concentrate on the patient filed in front of him. For over an hour, he updated files, dictated patient treatments, and checked status reports of those in recovery. He also filled out death warrants for those who could not be saved. Gorma knew he did not have to do this himself, but felt that it was a small gesture he could do for the families of those lost. Too often, though, there was no family to notify. Just comrade-in-arms or friends. Too many had no lover, no life-partner, or even a cousin left. Doom had taken too many. With a sigh, the doctor lifted his arms above his head in a stretch and rolled his head in a circle. Arus would take a lifetime to recover from the devastation wrought in such a short time.

A small knock on the door was followed by a technician letting the doctor know that Black would fly soon. Walking over to the captain, the doctor let a thought fly to the god and goddess that they watch over the brave man in front of him and keep him from the ultimate sacrifice. He deserved a happy ending. Mikko, like much of the rest of the planet, wanted to see the captain paired with their princess and given the crown of Arus.

In every way he already fulfilled that role, unofficially, of course. In addition to his role as Voltron's Commander, as ranking military officer on the planet he and the rest of the Voltron crew had built the foundations of Arus' new air force and army. He had worked to recruit some of the best trainers in several galaxies to come and build a training program. He had bullied and cajoled Galaxy Garrison into providing infrastructure such as training pods, and basic supplies like projectors, computers, and personnel to teach and build. The captain worked with diplomats, acted as a liaison to the people regarding their needs, and ran general interference for Coran and the princess. That did not even take into account his responsibilities with Galaxy Garrison or help with the continued rebuilding efforts. As the doctor thought about it, he wondered when the captain slept. He also managed to spend time with his daughter and teach self-defense or Tai Chi classes.

The doctor took a syringe out of the supplies brought by the nurse and injected a small amount of stimulant directly into the IV line. Gorma brought the chair into a seated position. Just over a minute later, the captain's eyes opened and he blinked rapidly.

"Easy captain, just give the stimulant a minute to clear your mind a bit. You have had just shy of two hours of sleep and Black is about ready to take to the skies." Gorma pulled out a small light and checked the captain's pupils. They dilated sluggishly, but the doctor expected that to improve rapidly in the next ten minutes. He held out a small bottle to the captain. "Take a drink." He smiled ruefully, "Truthfully it is really another one of those disgusting calorie packed mixtures Nurse Rader makes, but just pretend it is something tasty.

The captain forced himself upright and took the bottle with a shaking hand from the physician. He upended the bottle and drank the contents as quickly as possible and could not keep his nose from wrinkling at the disgusting taste. After this battle was over, he hoped to never have to drink anything like it ever again, God willing. Handing the bottle back to Gorma, he took the water in exchange and swished the faintly minty tasting liquid around to chase away the last of the taste of the nutrition drink.

"Are you with me, Captain?" the doctor asked.

Nodding, the captain replied, "Yes, I am getting there. Two hours you said? I did not intent to be here that long."

"The technicians will tell you they are putting you back up as quick as possible. Now, there has been a slight change of plan." Gorma changed the subject. "First I have to ask if you are still going through with the original plan?"

Captain Kogane nodded, "Sven has not been able to break through the lines between here an Pollux and that second attack force is keeping their defensive forces there. Doctor Gorma, there is just no other alternative."

Handing a small square to the captain he gave directions and explanations. "Put this under your tongue and let it dissolve. This is the initial dosage of Agappon. It should take effect within ten minutes. Let me know once it does and I will give you the first of the patches. The Obreckians suggest putting it either on your lower back or behind your ear. I would say behind the ear would be the easiest access."

Handing a bar to the captain, he continued, "Eat that as quickly as possible, and for the next hour cram as many of them into you as possible. It will be between two and three hours from now that your digestive process ceases and I would have as much in you as possible."

Opening the wrapper, the commander did as he was bade as the doctor continued.

"I heard from Obreck just a few hours ago. They have some additional instructions for me. Every time you come in for a booster, I will have either a nurse or myself standing by with a concentrated TPN formula. Your body can absorb some nutrients and calories that way to diminish the drain on your stores." He gave a wry grin, "Not that you have any great stores to draw on, Commander, a downside of staying so fit. At any rate, as long as you are on the ground, you will need to have a TPN bag attached." He held up a hand to ward off any protest, "You do not have to put it on a pole, but at least carry it with you. The technicians working on your lion actually do NOT work better with you hovering over them. You can use the time to go over tactics, check on your crew, or any other tasks you feel necessary. Moving around will be a healthy thing to do after being in this chair for such a long period of time.

"The Agappon may cause you to feel unable to sit still, that is a perfectly normal reaction. The line in your arm right now is just a TPN solution, which I will remove before I give you your first patch. Preferentially, I would leave a IV port in your arm, but I understand it could interfere with your movements, so we will just have to poke you full of holes. Any questions?"

Shaking his head, the pilot popped the last bite of the ration bar in his mouth and took the second one offered by the doctor. Opening the bar, he moved to stand and stretch slowly muscles cramped by long hours in a sitting position. The doctor busied himself gathering his scattered data pads and putting away they syringe. Several minutes passed in quiet as the commander moved through several stretches and the doctor puttered. Finally, the captain broke the silence. "I believe the Agappon is kicking in, doctor. I suddenly feel much clearer and less fatigued."

Nodding, the doctor gestured for the captain to have a seat. He check Captain Kogane's eyes and found the reaction times to be much faster. His heart rate had accelerated slightly, but that was to be expected from the stims. It would slow again as the stim wore off and the Agappon took more effect. Efficiently removing the IV, he sealed the small hole with a clear liquid. The liquid would allow air to pass through, but not water or dirt. It was much better than traditional bandages for sealing wounds, but the effectiveness diminished corresponding to the diameter of the wound. For small puncture, it worked wonders.

Flexing his wrist several times, Keith stood once more to continue stretching, loosening tight muscles. For a few minutes anyway, he could pretend this was just routine. The doctor put away the last few items and handed the captain a small patch. It lay in his hand, only an inch in diameter. It was amazing something so small could bring such huge effects. After a brief hesitation, the commander affixed the patch behind his ear.

In one of those rare moment of perfect timing, his communicator beeped with the news Black was ready to go. The doctor turned to walk out the hatch.

"Thank you, doctor."

Dr. Gorma paused. "Do not thank me, Captain Kogane. What you choose to do today will never be forgotten." With those quiet words, the doctor left.

Less than a minute later, Black lion roared out of the repair bay and rejoined the battle.

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	5. Battle

I had to replace this section when I realized the terrible grammar used herein.

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The RoBeast surpassed any they had fought in the last six days. The Voltron Force had taken over two hours to fight through to where it wrecked havoc to the planet. It stood head and shoulders above Voltron, covered not in armor, but in hundred or perhaps thousands of spikes; looking liking a mutated porcupine. It did not bode well for Voltron.

Keith rubbed a hand over his eyes, to bring them back to focus. He looked at his trembling hand in surprise. _Not now. No time for this now. _ The duration of each subsequent shot Gorma had given him decreased, and he had received the last one just over two hours prior. They had to finish the battle quickly before he crashed. Glancing back at the RoBeast, he realized it looked like a giant porcupine covered in quills. Keith had never seen one except in a zoo. Gentle creatures, porcupines chewed constantly because their teeth never ceased growing.

"Captain, what does porcupine teeth have to do with the RoBeast?" one of the ensigns asked him.

Keith realized not only were his thoughts wandering, but he had spoken them out loud. He was in real trouble this time.

"Nothing, just a stay thought. Ready to form Voltron! Activate Interlock. Dynotherms connection. Infracells up, megathrusters are go!"

"Let's go Voltron force!" came the resounding cry from the team.

Keith felt a surge of adrenaline as Voltron came together. They cautiously approached the RoBeast who had finally noticed the giant robot. "Careful team," Lance said, "Those spikes look deadly."

Before anyone could comment, the battle commenced.

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The RoBeast roared and a volley of spines flew toward Voltron. "Jump!" called Keith. The giant robot surged up in the air, but one of the spines scraped alongside the outside of yellow lion, sparking as it travelled along.

"Electroforce cross!" Called Keith, "Ensign, you alright?"

"Yes sir, but we should avoid those. My reading show they can penetrate our armor."

"Acknowledged. All right team, let's keep up the evasive maneuvers!"

For the next sixty seconds, Voltron jumped and turned as the RoBeast sent round after round of the deadly spines at him, without giving the team a chance to go on the offensive.

The normal banter among the team slowed as they concentrated on keeping the spines from connecting. They tried shooting missiles but could not stop long enough for a target lock.

"Team we are going to charge him and present a smaller target. Hit him with Eye Beams and then roll to the side before it can react."

"Keith are you crazy? You will be exposed!"

"Any other ideas, Lance? We are just dancing out here for its enjoyment!" Keith shot back.

Lance stayed uncharacteristically silent, no sarcastic comments forthcoming.

"On my mark team, we will hit him with eye beams!"

Voltron shot up in the air and gracefully turned a flip and shot toward the monster. The RoBeast shot in the direction as Voltron turned too abruptly for it to follow. "Eye beams!" shouted Keith. They scored a direct hit. "Pull up, and away!"

Voltron rolled as the Captain pulled hard on the controls; but not quick enough. They rolled just as the leading edge of the creature's spines reached the robot. Keith instinctively threw up his left arm to protect his face as the spines punched through and shattered the metals and polymers making up Voltron's face. The momentum of the roll prevented them from penetrating through completely, but it left Keith looking out into the open sky. He quickly put up a barrier to the wind and reached for the oxygen mask from the left side of his chair. _Not good,_ he thought,_ not good at all._

"Captain, you alright?"

"Negative. Team we have to finish this quickly, I am looking through some rather large holes here."

"Keith, if you needed a break, you should have said so. Now Black will be angry you marred his paint!" Lance tried to lighten the very dangerous situation.

"Ensign, analysis!"

"We partially blinded it, Captain. If we do one more round, I think we could keep it from launching long enough to finish it off."

Keith nodded, "Let's do it!"

With that they jumped to flip over and head toward the RoBeast. "Eye Beams!"

The RoBeast let loose another volley of its deadly spines just as the Eye Beams impacted its vulnerable eyes. Keith could not react fast enough to block all of them. He threw up a hand and arm to protect his face as the spines came through the gap the RoBeast had created earlier. A hundred small stings erupted over his arms and chest. Carefully lowering his arm he called for a regrouping while he assessed the damage. The RoBeast gave chase as Voltron retreated.

"Captain? Captain Keith. Captain, respond!"

"Dammit Keith, answer us! What's happened?"

Keith looked down to assess the damage. His chest looked like a pincushion and so did his arm. Nothing seemed to have penetrated too deeply except one spine which had pushed though just below his shoulder, pinning him against the chair. He wondered how he felt no pain. Just as the thought came through Keith felt a burst of pain so intense his vision turned red. As his vision cleared, he heard the team frantically trying to hail him. Keith reached to activate the voice com, deliberately leaving the video blank. "Sorry team, some of those quills got through, and they sting a bit." He replied, pleased his voice sounded steady. "We need to finish this guy off and pray Lotor will need time before releasing another one!"

"Yeah," answered Lance, "Where do they keep coming from, RoBeast R Us? I guess there was a sale and Lotor and Hagar bought out the store!"

While a few other comments passed around, Keith used his teeth to pull out the quills in his palm and fingers. Flesh came out in chunks as the barbs did not release their hold. Hand cleared of barbs, though bleeding profusely, the pilot reached down the side of the chair for the injection Dr. Gorma had left. It contained a powerful pain killer combined with pure adrenaline. It would buy him 15 to 20 minutes to end the battle and reach medical help. He hoped. If he did not bleed out first. He finally reached it finger by finger and brought it up to his teeth to open as he could not used his pinned left arm. He dared not remove the quill from the left shoulder as he would quickly bleed to death. The quill actually worked in his favor for the moment, keeping the wound staunched. Too much bumping and jumping however would probably tear things further.

Keith placed the device over his heart between quills and pressed the activation button. He felt a brief pinch and then the surge of adrenaline and pain relief drove his heart into overdrive. He no longer felt any pain, and clarity returned to his mind and eyes. With an almost fey feeling, Keith realized he had a near zero chancee of survival, but could not fail Arus now. Not with help so close. He turned to the task at hand and reached for the controls with his good hand, "Form Blazing Sword!"

The rest of the team gasped as Keith took control and seemed to anticipate the RoBeasts moves. In less than a minute, the RoBeast lay in pieces and everyone let up a sigh of relief.

It lasted only seconds. A roar sounded close to them, and they watched in horror as a new RoBeast came charging at them.

A host of foul language came from inside Voltron as they evaluated this newest threat.

Keith let the comments wash over him as they took evasive maneuvers to give themselves time. In the corner of his mind, the young captain realized this newest threat nearly guaranteed he would not make it back to the castle in time.

He let his teammates comments wash over him as he finished the evaluation of the RoBeast. They could finish this one, but it would take some time, which Keith feared he did not have. Putting all other thoughts aside, he blinked as his vision started to grey. Shaking his head he willed himself to stay awake.

Keith looked down and realized his controls were slippery with blood, with plenty pooled around him. "Shit."

He took a breath and tried to focus, but as the blood dripped, he started to fade. The RoBeast charged and between one blink and the next it had advanced half the distance to them. The team braced for impact, but suddenly the RoBeast stopped with a surprised look on its face, then it simply exploded.

"What the fu__?" came the comment from Lance.

As the dust settled, a transmission came, "Vehicle Voltron to Lion Voltron, Jeff here. How about you all take a break and let us have some fun for a while?"

"About damn time you showed up, Jeff!" Lance said snidely, "You almost missed the party."

A flurry of comments started flowing, but Keith interrupted, he tried to speak clearly, but his tongue felt too large for his mouth. "We'll take you up on the offer, Jeff. Voltron, separate! Team, let's head home."

More comments flew over the com as Vehicle Voltron separated to join the battle. Keith's hand momentarily slipped off the joystick and Black lurched slightly. He started to feel light headed and in a strange moment almost felt as though Black righted himself until he could reach for the controls. They looked so far away and suddenly Keith felt tired. The steady drip of blood seemed almost hypnotic and all other sounds started to fade. In some part of his mind, he felt Voltron separate and knew he had to do, something, with the controls, but it just did not seem important. His eyesight began fading. The errant thought crossed his mind dusk and sunset would not occur for hours. Trying to force his mind into some semblance of alertness he reached his hand across the long gulf to the control panel to try and press the autopilot to go home. It took too much effort, and he watched, almost amused as his hand fell to the side. His com beeped at him and a voice came through. It sounded worried. Keith heard the voice again and recognized it as one of his best friends, he should answer. Rousing himself Keith tried to reply, "L-l-l-ance? C-c-can't. . .dark. . .I. . ." Suddenly exhausted, speaking was not worth the effort when he could just rest. Keith lay his head back with a sigh let the warm comforting darkness embrace him. He just felt. . .so. . .tired.

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Lion Voltron separated and the lions began their return to the castle. Black lion was weaving unsteadily toward the castle and Lance activated his com, "Keith, you ok?" Silence greeted him. "Keith, answer me buddy, you ok?"

"L-l-l-ance? C-c-can't. . .dark. . .I. . ."

Lance could hear the sound of erratic breathing and then a long sigh. Black lion began to glide toward the surface. He hit the general com button "Rescue plan Delta! I repeat rescue plan Delta!" With precision, Red and Yellow lions formed up to the sides of the Black lion and each shot out strong magnetic lines to attach to Black. Lance called to castle control "Emergency, Black lion pilot is down, I repeat down! Have a emergency team standing by, we will arrive in two minutes. Jeff! Cover us, Keith is not responding!"

"Jeff here, you are covered. Go!"

Lance fought down the panic that threatened to engulf him. Keith would be just fine. Nothing could keep him down for long.

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Dr. Gorma waited for the arrival of the lions. He pushed all emotions behind him. For Captain Kogane to live, he could make no mistakes, and had to keep a clear head. Finally he saw the rapid approach of the lions. The gasps of the technicians around him gave a hint as to the damage the Black had sustained. The worst part became clear as the lions landed as gently as possible. With more care than normal, an anti-gravity crane gently set the Black lion close to the platform the medical team stood upon to give them quick access to the Captain.

Dr. Gorma did not wait until the lion had come to rest before he keyed in the emergency override to the cockpit. Prepared as he was, he stopped momentarily in shock as he saw the Captain. The doctor could not remember the last time he moved so quickly. He saw a faint rise of Keith's chest and knew the captain still lived, but if they did not take him to immediate surgery, that would not last.

Moving quickly, he took surgical tape and stabilized the quill sticking through the captains shoulder. They would have to take extra care when moving him to prevent any further blood loss. As he taped, one of the nurses started an IV. With no place in the right arm around the quills to put an IV and the left arm obviously not a choice, she found herself in the unique position of putting in a line in the leg. Her name was Rachael, and later she would break down, but now she would do everything within her power to save this hero of Arus from dying. Pushing her horror aside, Rachael quickly cut the leg of the uniform to find one of the arteries in the leg. She started praying as hard as she ever had before that this man would live and recover. Rachael also knew she would never forget the sight that had greeted her as she entered behind Dr. Gorma.

The captain's head had slipped to the side and rested on the restraint, the only thing keeping him upright. The left arm and side of his uniform glistened with fresh blood. Rachael remembered thinking the crimson color sparkled and swirled prettily. The left arm lay flopped between his side an the pilots seat, the fingers an unhealthy grey color. The front of his chest down to his lower abdomen looked like Keith had fallen on a bed of nails. Blood dropped steadily off many of the spikes, the dull metal color awash in brilliant red. His right arm rested on his leg where it had slipped off the controls. Blood dripped steadily from the arm where the spiked had penetrated deeper. Only his legs and lower abdomen had avoided damage. Ironically, the white boots remained white except where blood pooled around the souls. Rachael knew Keith still lived, but the horror of seeing him would not dim for many years and she could not know how he still lived.

The medical team worked to stabilize the captain as much as possible. Two sets of hands held Keith steady as they released the safety harness. The medics slipped a stiff board behind him carefully not touching the protruding spine and straps fastened around his head and below where the spines protruded. They would have to steady him with hands on either side of his chest because the spines left no room. Rachael taped the iv bag to the board as the team prepared to move the captain. The medical team moved with extreme care as they lifted Captain Kogane and handed him to more people waiting on the other side of the cockpit door.

Once through the door, they gently lay him on his side on a gurney. They started to run to the medical ward. As they did the soft rasp of the captain's breathing hitched and stopped. After a few seconds it started again. The team ran faster.


	6. Finding Out

Gorma had yelled instructions to the medical staff as he prepped for surgery. Just looking at the captain, he knew it would be long and grueling. If he had not had word Garrison had arrived with backup medical staff, it would have pushed him to make the unthinkable decision. As it was, Gorma knew the other pilots would be rushing in to wait. He had other plans for them. They would be moved to two exam rooms on the pretext of clearing them for return to flight. Now that the other Voltron had arrived as well as Garrison fleet, that would not happed. The pilots were weaving on their legs, exhaustion pulling at them. Sleeping in four hour chunks for days and intense dogfighting, injuries, and lack of food had left them drooping. With the arrival of relief, they would soon all crash from their adrenaline rushes, and Gorma would ensure they all had at least ten hours of sleep. When they arrived for their exams, the nurses had orders to slip them all an injection to ensure they would sleep. He would have them moved to their rooms by orderlies, because he needed the beds. Already, the medical ward was over capacity and only life threatening patients were being treated here. The rest were triaged and sent to other rooms set up in the castle depending on their injury. The only thing that made the doctor feel thankful was that careful preparation had led to less confusion, more people being treated quickly, and fewer fatalities. Not many fewer, but every one made Gorma feel it was worth it.

He had ensured his staff would rotate in six hour shifts with several "breaks" where they would deal with sterilizing equipment, laundry, and other mundane tasks to try to give them time to reground after dealing with so much pain and non-stop injuries. His staff was in better condition than the fighters, but not by much. Everyone prayed Lotor would run out of equipment soon, or at least retreat now that Garrison had begun to arrive. Gorma gave the last his instructions to a young ensign who had broken two ribs, sprained his wrist, and broken his leg in two places. He was out for the duration of the battle, but could still help organize and take notes. The ensign nodded and left the room. The doctor paused and closed his eyes for a moment. The captain's chances were less than 10, but after all he had sacrificed for Arus and her people, they could try to save him. With a deep breath, Gorma pushed into the operating theater and began to fight against the odds.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Lance opened his eyes, and looked onto a very familiar ceiling. His eyes felt gummy and his body felt like lead. Someone hummed a rather unidentifiable tune in the background. Turning his head, he saw Cady swinging her legs on a chair as she colored at his desk. Keith must be out on patrol if she was here. Lance bolted upright, Keith! What was the time, why was he in his room. The last thing he remembered was sitting for an examination as Keith had been rushed to surgery.

Cady looked over as he sat up in bed. "Hi, Uncle Lance! You woked up!" She jumped off the chair and carefully picked up an insulated mug. Walking with extreme slowness she crossed the five feet to Lance's bed and handed it to him. "Coffee!"

Taking the mug, he gulped carefully at the still warm liquid. He only half listened to Cady's chatter as he tried to wake his brain and kept himself from dashing to the hospital. Finally something she said caught his attention. "Stop, Cady. What did you say about shots?"

Cady rolled her eyes, used to the way it took Lance a few minutes to start thinking. "I SAID, I am glad I did not have to have a shot like you and Uncle Pidge and Uncle Hunk and Allura and the new pilots. Shots are just no fun!"

Lance began piecing together what must have happened, "Is anyone else awake, Cady-did-what?"

Cady nodded, "Just Uncle Pidge, though. The nurse told me I had to let everyone sleep, cause you were very tired. I knew if Uncle Pidge was awake, you would wake up too." She bit down on her lip, obviously trying to remember something, then brightened, "Uncle Hunk is out for the durfacetion!"

"Dur-a-tion." Corrected Lance absently. "Why are you HERE, and not with Nanny?"

Cady shuffled her toe against the floor, "Well, I did not want to be alone."

Lance took a breath. When Cady gave these kinds of answers, you had to drag them out one by one. It took patience, and that was usually anyone's job but his. Boy he really missed Sven! He could coax Cady better than even Keith! "You were not alone. You were with Nanny and the other children." When she did not answer but continued to draw circles against the floor with her toe, Lance went over to kneel in front of her. He put a finger under her chin and lifted her eyes to his. "Cady, what's up?"

"Daddy is not in his room yet."

Inside, Lance froze. He looked at the time. It had been over 9 hours since they had brought in Keith. This could NOT be good. "Maybe they had to put him somewhere else because of all the other people who have been hurt."

Cady shook her head. "No, the nurses just told me to go back to Nanny and they would let me know. I want to go wait, but they said I can not. 'Cause they are too busy and I would just be in the way." She looked at him with tears in her eyes, "I would not be in the way, Uncle Lance. I could sit quietly and wait, but they wouldn't let me. But if a grown-up goes, they have to let me stay. Uncle Pidge had to check the lions, but YOU could go with me."

Lance was already heading to have a shower. "Just give me five minutes, Cady-did and I will go wait with you." He took slightly longer than five minutes. Several days worth of grime and stink could not be cleaned in one day. He would have to toss the sheets as well. Perhaps convince Nanny he did not have to do his own laundry for once. After all, he was a Hero, and a tired one at that. Lance just let the thoughts pour out of his brain. If he thought about mundane tasks, he would not have to wonder why Keith was still in surgery after nine hours. He would not have to fear the worst.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The doors opened and Dr. Gorma walked out to see the original Voltron force eating and carrying on small conversation. Cady was curled up in her favorite seat on Hunk's lap. Dr. Gorma thought about sending her out, but she had been by her father's bedside enough times she had earned the right to hear directly from him.

The other four Voltron pilot's had begun a rotation in the lions to help with the battle against Lotor's forces. With the arrival of the garrison forces, and more arriving hourly, the tide had turned. Lotor had begun to take huge losses. He now had less than half his forces left and the attrition rate had become terrible. There had been no emergence of a RoBeast for nearly four hours and the hope was he had no more. Dr. Gorma had checked on the status of the battle while he cleaned up after surgery and had eaten something. He could not face the force without some fortification and wanted a chance to settle the captain in a recovery room. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and leaned against the wall, not caring for once about professional appearances.

Allura was the first one to notice him. Her heart lurched as she watched him rub his eyes and slump against the wall. She had _never_ seen him look like this in all the years she had known him. Taking a breath and fighting against panic, she tapped Lance on the shoulder and pointed out the doctor to him. Within a minute, the force had gathered around the doctor, waiting for the news.

Finally, Lance could take no more, "Doc, please." His face was showing his anxiety and he could not seem to pull air into his lungs. 'Please,' he begged to any higher power which would listen 'Please do not take him away from us.' Lance could not imagine any life without his best friend and commander. It had nearly done him in when they had thought Sven dead. But if it were Keith. It would devastate him. And Allura? Lance did not think she could survive mentally intact without Keith. Although Lance could not figure out the relationship between the two of them, it worked. Allura had grown to be a responsible, caring monarch and a hell of a pilot under Keith's tutelage. She really had been a spoiled brat when they first arrived. Beautiful, but spoiled. Lance still remembered the first conversation the five of them had about the princess shortly after their arrival. No one had expected to see such a gorgeous woman. They had all followed her around with their tongues nearly hanging out until they realized what a handful she was. Sven, Lance, Hunk, and Pidge had gleefully turned her over to Keith on the pretext he was the leader of the expedition. Over the last few years she had grown and changed into a lovely woman, who adored her Captain. Lance still held out hope Keith would realize this and do something about it. Worst would be Cady. She loved her father with a fervor he returned. Yet at the same time, Cady had grown up around the Garrison. She had known people to not come back, but Keith had always come back to her. What would happen to her if? No, he would not contemplate that possibility.

Lance shook his head and brought himself back to the present when Dr. Gorma started to speak.

"Captain Kogane suffers from multiple injuries. Multiple broken bones, cuts and lacerations. The majority of the physical damage came from the last attack. Those quills, for a lack of a better description, were all barbed and had to be dug out before they could move any deeper. The only fortunate thing was the captain had been bandaged for cracked ribs and the extra padding kept many of the barbs from sinking deep. He has muscle damage in his right arm and hand from them and will require much physical therapy to regain use. One barb penetrated completely through just below his left shoulder. It cut off blood supply to his left arm, and it will take time to see what if any is the permanent damage. The barbs had to be severed from the main shaft one at a time and then removed. We think we accounted for all of them, but some were rather small. Quite surprising that. I guess they were designed with that idea in mind. Large quantities, small item, more damage."

The team listen without a word. Dr. Gorma looked grey with exhaustion and had paused to rub his eyes again. When the silence continued, Hunk finally broke it. He could not stand not knowing. "Doc, what aren't you telling us?" He tightened his hold on Cady as she looked without expression at the doctor. For such a young child, she already had her father's remarkable control.

Dr. Gorma closed his eyes and finally opened them, looking directly at the princess. "He has been taking Agappon."

Allura gasped and turned white. She swayed on her feet and would have fallen had Pidge not caught her around the waist and supported her.

"What the hell is Agappon, and why is that bad?" Lance demanded, his fists clenching and unclenching in fear.

Neither the princess nor the doctor answered immediately. The princess had brought her left fist to her heart and her right hand covered it. "H-h-how long, doctor?"

"Over 72 hours." Came the flat response.

Allrua's legs gave out under her, and she sank to the floor, both hand coming to cover her face. "Oh goddess!" Tears started flowing down her face and she covered her mouth in disbelief.

The team looked back and forth between Allura and the doctor, fear and panic in their features.

Hunk looked at the doctor and very clearly enunciating each word spoke low. "Doctor, with all due respect, what the fu is Agappon?" forgetting to watch his language around Cady in his agitation. Ironically, she began petting his arm to calm him.

The doctor sighed and waved his hands for the team to move. He walked with slow deliberate steps to a chair and nearly fell in it. He leaned back and closed his eyes, beginning to speak and dreading what he had to tell them.

"Keith came to me when he knew Arus would have to hold out a minimum of five days before help would arrive. We discussed a rotation schedule with the other lions and what we could do to keep them in the air. He wanted to plan that we would hold out seven days before help arrived. Seven days." Dr. Gorma shook his head, "I knew what we were up against, and what advice I gave went against my oaths as a doctor. I also knew my oaths as a doctor would be useless if the planet lay in ruins. So we planned. Then came the kicker. What about Black? He knew and I knew there were very few choices. Voltron would be needed and there were only two people who could fly black and of those two, only he was fully trained and the princess was needed in Blue. How could I keep him in the air to protect Arus and the people?

The plan evolved as such. For as long as possible, I would keep him going on stims. We started with low doses and gradually increased the potency of each dose. The stims would increase metabolism. With each shot he would receive, he would also receive a high potency multi-vitamin shot to try and combat some of the effects and we would increase his caloric intake. Essentially we concentrated TPN's and had him drink a rather foul concoction of concentrated calories.

At some point the stim would fail and would not be able to keep him going. It varies with each person but two days is average. Keith made it to the third day.

Agappon is a root found only on Planet Obreck. Legend has it one of their ancient warrior kings chewed it in a great battle against darkness. The battle lasted ten days and at the end of the tenth day, when he knew they had driven back the darkness, he turned to the soldier at his side, smiled, and collapsed. He died even as he fell. They say he had aged fifty years. His hair had turned snow white, the skin hung loosely from his frame, and his muscles had wasted away to nothing. It is used to this day there for meditation, dream walking, and other religious observances. It is a stimulant but works differently. As long as you chew the root or have regular doses absorbed through the skin, it continues to work. The longer you use it, the less effective it becomes and booster doses must be repeated at a more frequent interval. It keeps a person alert and awake but comes with a huge cost. We are not completely sure of how it works, but most believe some magic is involved in its growing cycle and harvest. Obreck will not allow anyone outside their religious hierarchy to know anything about it. When you take Agappon it somehow keeps the higher brain functions working at normal or higher than normal levels. Essentially no 'battle fatigue' symptoms. No loss of judgment or impaired decision making. Physically a person does not lose reaction time or feel tired.

Agappon essentially stops many metabolic processes. The body no longer digests or absorbs food and must survive on its stored reserves. In addition, the body required a higher than normal amount of energy to function. Heart rate slows so the body can take more damage than normal without the person losing consciousness or bleeding to death. The danger comes when the person stops taking Agappon. All the damage taken, lack of nourishment, and sleep hit the body at once. As you can imagine, the longer one takes the root, the harder the subsequent crash. Stories and medical histories show there is a threshold around three days where the rate of collapse and non-recovery from Agappon increases exponentially. In a healthy person."

Dr. Gorma paused in his recitation and leaned his head back on the chair, closing his eyes. The force did not know how to react. The only sound from them was the princess crying quietly while Pidge held her. Keith had been badly injured before. Actually, Lance thought, so many times they could no longer count the hours they had spent waiting to hear he was pulling through and would have another scar and another heroic tale to tell. At least would have another heroic tale to twitter him about and Keith would stoically take the scar and not think about it again. He was too damn noble for his own good. Before Lance could find his voice, Cady's broke the silence in her too serious voice, "Dr. Gorma. Will my Daddy be alright?"

The doctor was quiet so long that everyone thought he may have fallen asleep. Finally, in a very quiet voice, "Will he live? I believe so. Will he fully recover? The chances are very slim. IF I can keep him here long enough for his body to recover. IF he actually listens for the first time and follows a recovery and physical plan." The doctor took a deep breath and released it. "The captain's heart took a tremendous strain. Between the Agappone and the adrenaline he used. . .he flat lined no less than five times, I stopped counting. Until he wakes up and gains a little strength, I will not know if there is any damage to his heart. The blood loss was tremendous and we do not know if he suffered any brain injury due to lack of oxygen or if he will regain full use of his left hand. Medical technology can only do so much." The doctor's voice had grown rough. He had tried to see the captain as just a patient, but had worked on him too many times and watched him disregard his own safety time after time to protect Arus to not grow fond of the young man. He shook his head, cutting off any negative thinking, "I will not do the captain any good in this condition. If you will excuse me, I must sleep."

Cady nodded and looked around at the rest of the team. She would cry later, right now here daddy needed her. Allura needed her. She loved her Daddy too, although would not admit it aloud. Cady nursed daydreams of her father marring Allura. They would all live together like a family and Cady would take over flying one of the lions when she was grown-up enough.

Allura looked up, tears still running down her face, "Can we see him at least?"

The doctor sighed and nodded. "He will most likely sleep for two or three days. We have him on a light sedative and a spinal block for the pain. We cannot give him any pain medicine because it depresses heart and breathing rates. Keep in mind, his body has burned off any excess fat, although he had little enough to start with, and some muscle mass. We are pumping him with as many calories as we can, but be prepared." Dr. Gorma took a breath and released it. "He may have small moments where his eyes open, but he will not be lucid for several days. The best thing for him is quiet and rest. Just let me check if everything is ready for visitors." The doctor did not bother with the normal restrictions as to visitors. He knew Keith would be completely unaware of any presence in his room, and perhaps hearing familiar voices would help. He also knew once the force saw him, very little would be keeping them from his bedside. "One last detail. Because he is not quite stable, we are leaving a nurse in the room at all times." With that, Dr. Gorma began praying to the God and Goddess as he walked to the recovery room, wanting to make sure Keith did not look as bad as he was. There was nothing he could do about his hollow cheeks and bruised face, but a blanket should keep Cady from seeing the extent of the damage. The nurse shook out the blanket while Dr. Gorma check the stitching one more time. The oxygen hissed softly, and the heart monitor beeped in slow, but steady rhythm. Sending up one last prayer he told the nurse that someone was to be in attendance at all times with a defibrillator standing ready. It was just a feeling, but Dr. Gorma did not think Keith was in the clear just yet. Unable to delay any longer, he requested a nurse to send in Keith's family while retreated to the comfy couch in his office and sleep.

Hunk stood up carrying Cady while they waited for the doc to let them in to see Keith. He hoped it was not as bad as he feared. What would happen to Cady? He knew her family on Earth would take her in a heartbeat, but she had grown up on Arus and Earth with them. Shaking his head he paused thinking of all the times she had waited by her Keith's bedside alternately bullying and nursing him. Hunk believed she was the only reason he kept fighting to survive. In the last year, the Cap had another reason, although he did not know it. Hunk's gaze drifted to Allura who was wiping her eyes before going into the room. A nurse came to fetch them and let them see Keith.

Hunk entered the room first, carrying Cady. They could hear the soft sounds of the heart monitor and the low hissing indicating an oxygen mask was in use. As they crossed the threshold, Cady gasped and Hunk involuntarily tightened his grip on her as she buried her face in his shoulder. Dr. Gorma had hinted Keith looked rough, but not that he looked like warmed over death. They had all seen Keith too many times to count in a hospital bed, but this! This was. Hunk could not even come up with the word in his own mind. "Uncle Hunk?"

It took two tries before Hunk could force words out, "Yeah, Cady-did-what?" He tried using the nickname her 'uncles' had given her after being greeted by the same words from her father many, many times. She was rather mischievous, Lance's influence he supposed.

"This is bad, huh?"

"Yeah, Cady, it's bad." It did not even occur to Hunk to censor things for Cady. Growing up on a military base and amid a war, she understood things well beyond what a seven year old should. "You heard the doc, Cady. He will pull through, he always does. You know he will never leave you if he has any power over it." He patted the back of her head, his heart breaking for her. Hunk could only imagine what it had cost Keith to do what he did, knowing the very large chance he would never return.

Cady rubbed her eyes on Hunk's shoulder and then pushed him slightly to let him know she was ready. He walked to the bed, snatching a chair along the way so Cady could stand on it. He pulled it up to Keith's right side. With ease of long practice he set Cady down and she carefully turned to perch on the edge of her Daddy's bed. "Hi Daddy. You do not look very good today. Does this mean we can stay in bed and have pancakes? I like having pancakes in bed with you. I have to go back to the caves soon 'cause Nanny is gonna come looking and I do not want to miss desert today." She leaned closer, "Chocolate! Nanny said us kids have been so good the last few days she will break out the supply Uncle James sent. She said she would save a double chocohunka dunka for me! Anyway, get better soon. When Nanny says it is ok, I will come read to you. Nanny found a new book of tales she said you would like. I love you, Daddy. Wake up fast!" Cady leaned over to gently kiss Keith's cheek and brush a strand of hair which had fallen onto his forehead to the side. Then she turned and raised her hands to Hunk. "Nanny will be looking for me, Uncle Hunk."

Picking her up and putting her on his shoulders, Hunk looked down to his commander and friend. "Wake up fast, Keith, otherwise you know Cady-did-what and Erick are going to cause no end of mischief!" He turned and walked out of the room, knowing Allura, Lance, and Pidge would want their turns.

The other three walked in to the room. Allura blanched and swayed on her feet. Pidge and Lance guided her to the chair Cady had used. "Oh goddess."

Pidge covered his eyes an shuddered. The Cap had been in many scrapes over the years, but looking at him, Pidge did not know what to think.

Lance patted Allura's shoulder while she looked at Keith. He looked at his best friend and wondered yet again at the will-power of the captain which never let him give up even when things looked bleak. He honest-to-God did not know how Keith could always find a way to beat the odds. Maybe because he really believed they would win every time. Lance took a deep breath. Well, he was going to have to start believing too, because it he would have to be Keith for a while.

Lance patted Allura one more time and turned to Pidge. "C'mon squirt, we had best check on the Black and think about giving the other team a break. Pidge lay a hand on the bed and then turned to follow Lance out the door. Allura sat in the chair abandoned. Taking a breath, she lifted the blanket to see the actual damage done. She had her suspicions that Dr. Gorma was trying to spare the team anguish of seeing Keith in this state. Her hand shook as she looked.

His right armed was swathed from shoulder to wrist in a white bandage. His hand was carefully turned upright, and she could see where chunks of his fingers and palm were missing from where the barbs had hit him. They had left his hand open to the air, although the nurses would have put a healing balm on it. Allura realized Keith must have pulled them out so he could continue to fly. She did not know how he had functioned when he must have been in so much pain. Her inspection continued across his chest, where more swaths of bandages gave his mending ribs support. He had always been lean with well defined muscles. Now his stomach and ribs protruded through and he looked shrunken somehow. His stomach was concave and looking upward his shoulders were protruding sharply outward. Tears formed in Allura's eyes as she surveyed the wreck of a man who had walked down the hall only days ago with women's eyes of all ages following him. She blinked them away and looked over his left arm. They had left it unbandaged with only a poultice to keep the wound clean and absorb any drainage. His left arm had two iv lines in it. One she knew was a TPN or nutrient solution as they tried to replace some of what Keith had sacrificed to the Agappon. His arm looked like it belonged to a man three times his age with the skin hanging loose where muscle used to lie. Her eyes drifted downward and she saw his hand for the first time. The fingers had curled into a crab like position and so the doctors had carefully opened his hand and placed it into a specially designed glove which would keep the fingers from curling and would gently move them in a random fashion. The hope was to keep the fingers and the muscles from atrophying and reduce the damage caused by lack of blood flow to the area. Doc Gorma had success in the past with the technique. Below his waist he had nearly no damage. A broken foot which had been set and injected with a substance to encourage new bone growth and repair. Medical science had yet to find a way to instantly heal broken bones, but it had found a way to enhance the natural ability of the body to fix itself. A biodegradable polymer was injected and affixed around the break in the bone. The polymer provided stability and strength while the body repaired the break. Doctors had found the bones knit together more quickly especially if they could keep the stress off the break for a day or two. In Keith's case this would not be a problem, he would not even awake before then. Combined with physical therapy, he should suffer no long term damage from the break.

Like the rest of his body, Keith's legs looked wrong. The skin hung loosely, making him look like a fat man who had lost so much weight the skin had remained stretched. She had avoided looking at his face. Allura was afraid to see what she would see. Slowly she tucked the blanket back around the man she had come to love and adore, although she did not have the courage to admit it to him. She looked at the nurse in the corner who was occupying herself with folding bandages. Looking at the time, Allura knew she did not have the luxury of staying at Keith's side. As Cady had to return to the safety of the caves, Allura needed go back to the danger of the sky. Lotor's forces had been severely diminished, but he had not retreated. From the last report, if he did not leave soon, there would be nothing left of his armada. Slowly she stood and brushed her hand across Keith's face. A tear slid out from one eye and she leaned over to give him a gentle kiss, something she could only do when he was unknowing. With a last brush of her hand over his face, Allura turned and walked out of the room back to the battle, putting thoughts of Keith in a compartment where she would not be distracted from the task at hand.

Daniee, the nurse, watched her leave and wiped a tear from her own eye. It was common knowledge the princess was devoted to her captain. The staff hoped that one day the captain would return her affection, but no one had ever seen evidence to the contrary. Except for his daughter, Captain Kogane kept himself under tight emotional wraps. The rest of the team flirted and dated among the staff and the village girls, but not their captain. The only girl in his life was his daughter. Rumor had it the few girls who had tried to pursue him were turned down politely with the reason he did not have time a woman deserved to devote to a relationship and he did not want to set either party up for hurt. Daniee had heard of once when someone had tried to push past the captain's reserve even after a polite refusal. After several weeks, the captain had requested a meeting with the woman and her father for a witness. Father and daughter were seen leaving the castle fifteen minutes after they had arrived. The daughter had been ashen faced and the father looked rather bewildered. No one ever spoke of what the captain had said, but no other girl had tried to pursue him again. Daniee only hoped the captain would see what was in front of him in the form of the princess. After all he had sacrificed for Arus and what he had come to mean, the planet wanted to ensure he stayed on Arus and would give him anything he desire, including their princess, to see to that.

Thinking about the last four years, Daniee wondered if the captain even knew how much he was adored by Arusians. His unflappable demeanor, honor, and code of ethics had become a _pinnacle_ to which all young men aspired. His courage in the face of overwhelming odds, inability to quit, and belief that good would always triumph had inspired the people of Arus to look beyond themselves and their fears and look to their neighbors and their communities to try and build something worthwhile. Although not an Arusian name, Keith topped the lists of names chosen for boys.

Captain Kogane had personally rescued the princess more times than most people could count. Daniee had been working with Dr. Gorma for nearly two years now. In that time she had seen the captain come in stabbed, shot, beaten, concussed, with nearly every imaginable injury. Yet he always recovered and kept going. Dr. Gorma had given up on keeping him in bed long enough to recover without the use of sedatives, and the captain fought him for every hour he had to stay. Daniee had seen the scars that criss-crossed Kogane's body and wondered at his will-power to never stop. Another tear slipped out to join the first one, splashing on one of the bandages she folded. This time however, even the doctor did not know what the outcome would be.

The young nurse turned to put on some soft, soothing music so the room seemed less sterile. After two hours she traded places with one of the other nurses who had brought in charts to update while she stayed with the captain. This would grow to be the pattern for next several days. Keith would be completely unaware how closely they kept a watch on him. He would not learn until much later he had crashed three more times and two nurses had each caught the beginnings of a crash and prevented them. Each time they brought him back, it took a little longer as if the captain was losing the ability to fight to come back. The third time had taken twelve minutes to bring him back. After the third attack, they took Keith back to surgery and installed a pacemaker they hoped would be temporary. He had been out of the first surgery only six and a half hours.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

As Hunk left with Cady, he pondered. Over the last four years they had been on Arus, a rhythm had developed for whenever Keith landed in the hospital. Hunk would take Cady in first and then the others would come in with Pidge leaving first, then Lance, and finally Allura. During the day, someone would always be beside Keith so he would not wake alone. When Cady was younger, she would sing songs or make up nonsense stories to tell him. In the last two years as she started to read, Nanny and Allura had found books at her level she could read to her Dad. Keith had been so proud when she started picking up reading at such a young age. He never pushed her, and let her set the pace. The nurses all adored Cady. She was a bright, friendly girl who always had a smile ready. Somewhere along the way, they had told the force they could keep an eye on Cady when she was here and the nurses, orderlies, and doctors had no problems with her staying with her dad. When this latest crisis was over, a cot would magically appear in Keith's room, and Cady would stay until he was released. Hunk chuckled inwardly. In reality, Cady would end up on the hospital bed with Keith most of the time. Their little girl loved cuddling. From the moment she was born, she had wrapped Keith around her little finger. He had read somewhere that babies do better sleeping beside their parents, so Keith had her beside him from day one. The guys had quickly learned if they wanted Cady to sleep, she needed someone beside her. They had all learned how to wear a sling so they could study or do their chores while she slept. Eventually she had grown out of the need, but would crawl out of her bed and into Keith's whenever she had the chance. When Keith was not home, it was a toss-up where she would go. Hunk smiled at the thought. Who could have believed five men could be such pushovers when it came to one little girl. Guess that was why the princess had them around her pinky. Cady had already broken them in.

"Uncle Hunk? Black needs to see us. We have to tell him Daddy will be ok."

Hunk nodded, and changed direction even though he knew Nanny would have his head. Cady believed Black was alive and had feelings just like she did. He would never admit it, but Hunk did not believe she was entirely wrong. Besides, if they told Black, the technicians would hear and then the word would spread the Captain was alive. They all needed some good news today.

The doors to the repair bay whooshed open to a mad house of activity. Repairs were being made to aircraft, land based fighters and launchers, weapons recharged and reloaded as magazines ran dry. Dominating the scene were the lions. Currently only Red and Black were undergoing repairs, but that could change at any second. As they drew close to the lions, it looked as though Red was about ready to return to battle. Lance was consulting with Pidge and one of the technicians about something they saw on the data pad in front of them. Large gestures followed their conversation. Finally, Lance nodded, then went to the elevator which would take him to the cockpit. It looked as though he was running through a final check before taking Red back to the battle. Lt. Hargrave was no where to be seen but Hunk guessed she was trying to catch some zs now that Lance had swapping places with her.

It took them several minutes, but finally they approached Black. Even after nearly twelve hours of repair, Black looked beaten. They had not yet replaced the polymer which protected the cockpit making the lion look unfinished. The technicians were taking advantage of the opening to run cables and lines and wires to try and repair the damage. Black's front left leg was being reattached and the numerous dents were being left except for where they impacted function. Black was needed back in battle, even though they did not yet have a pilot for him.

"Uncle Hunk, Black is sad." Cady piped up unexpectedly. She really though the lions were just large metal animals with special abilities.

"Why do you say that, Cady? How do you know he is sad?"

Cady appeared to be listening to something, "He thinks he did a bad job of protecting Keith. He tried his best, but he was tired. Put me down, Uncle Hunk, I have to go talk to him."

Hunk complied with her request and watched as she walked over to sit on Black's front right paw. She was nearly swallowed within the grooves. Watching her, Hunk gave her the privacy he knew she needed, although he stayed close enough to listen to what she was saying so he could tell Nanny and the other uncles. She had always found sitting with Black when Keith was hurt soothing. Lance had often eavesdropped on their 'conversations.' Cady would confess things to Black she did not even discuss with her Uncles. Even though Cady was a bright, cheerful, outgoing girl, she took after her father in that she kept many things close to her chest, including her worries and fears about her Daddy. Hunk shook his head. Maybe they had made a mistake to not try and protect her better from learning about the realities of being a daughter and niece of a bunch of pilots. They often forgot how young she really was to be asked to deal with such harsh realities.

"Hi Black. You are sad too, huh? I saw Daddy. He looks bad this time Black. He needs lots and lots of sleep, I think. I will have to ask Nanny to find more books to read to him. We will have to think of ways to keep him in bed this time, Doctor Gorma says. What?" She paused and cocked her head up at a listening angle, "No, it was not your fault." A shorter paused followed, "Cause you and daddy had been up the air for how long? And you did not even have a chance to rest or let them fix you up good. Nanny says Daddy was doing what he had to and you too! Uncle Sven told me once about Lotor, and I do not think he is a nice man. I know you and Daddy will always protect us. What? Oh, Nanny says you and Daddy held out. More help came and we are safe cause Daddy, um, you know the word?" she listened again, "That's the one. Sac-ri-ficed for us. I think Nanny is starting to like Daddy, FINALLY! Anyways, Daddy is going to live and it will be up to you and me to make him all better." There was a longer pause this time as Cady absently patted Black still in her listening pose. "Can you really do that? So what do we have to do? Oh. That's gonna be hard. I mean how do I make them listen to me? No one thinks you really talk, except Daddy. When I tell him about you talking to me, he just smiles and tells me to listen hard. We are gonna have to wait until Daddy wakes up, though. What? Ok, I can do that let me ask Uncle Hunk. Uncle Hunk?"

Hunk came closer, "What do you need, Cady?"

Cady chewed on her lip and looked at her uncle. She knew he was the easiest to work around of her four uncles, but even so, he still would be stubborn about the strangest things. "Ok, Black has a request. He said he knows you do not believe me but asks you to please hu-mor me. Is that the right word? Anyway, he is really scared about Daddy and would like to see with his own eyes that Daddy is ok. He says Daddy is too far away to hear him. I am not sure what he means by that, but Black says he has never been so far away before. Does that make sense, Uncle Hunk?"

Hunk just stared at the little girl and then back at the lion. Was it really possible that, he shook his head, no he could not think about that right now. "Yes, it does Cady. So what does 'Black' want me to do?"

"Ok, just listen I am not sure what it all means, he's gonna tell me slowly. She looked at the lion with a look of intense concentration on her face, "Ok, you have to make an intra, inter, interface? between Daddy's room and Black. He needs um, Black I don't know that word, oh, Uncle Hunk he wants sound and pictures. Um, bi-, um, bi-dir," She paused and then said one syllable at a time as though she were repeating after someone. "Bye. Dir. Rec. Shon. Al. And he would like, please, hook it up to the," she again said as though repeating one syllable at a time, "Gam. Ma 4-2-7. Ar-ray." She looked at Black and nodded, "Can you do that Uncle Hunk? He says it is really important cause he can't hear Daddy."

Hunk just looked at the little girl, stunned, not knowing what to think. He knew she spent a lot of time with the lions and Keith was forever talking about technical schematics with Pidge while she was in the room, but there was simply know way she could know about setting up a bi-directional communication and know where to specifically attach it. He looked between Cady and the Lion. Slowly, he nodded, stunned. As he nodded he heard a shout from the technicians inside and he would swear Black appeared to sit up straighter, although he did not know how that was possible. He heard one of them shout, "I did not do anything, it just came back on-line, I swear!"

Cady looked at her uncle with a huge smile, "Black says thank you very much it takes some worry off his mind. He also says I have to go back to Nanny now, cause he needs to work on being better for Daddy." She took Hunk's hand and began skipping toward the exit talking about the chocolate she would have for desert that night. Hunk just kept looking back at Black, and he would swear the lion just looked, better? Was he going crazy. Well, he would do what Cady asked him to and hook up a feed to Keith's room. Shaking his head one more time, he walked Cady back to the caves to turn her over to Nanny. As they exited the repair bay, he heard the roar of Red's engines as Lance returned to the fight.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Hunk returned to the repair bay shortly after returning Cady to Nanny. Glancing at the time, he knew he would not have time to keep his promise before needing to return to the battle. Feeling slightly foolish, he walked over to stand at Black's foot. "Um, Black? Yellow will be back soon, and I have to return to the battle. So, um, I will tell you that Keith's condition is grave. They have a nurse station in his room at all time. He is breathing on his own, but they do have him on oxygen. His heart is strong, well you know that, I guess." Hunk rubbed his hand over the back of his neck feeling slightly silly talking to the huge lion. "So, um, I will leave instructions for the techs to put a bi-directional transmitter on a specific frequency in for you and um, when I come in off my next shift I will hook up something in Keith's room." Looking up at Black he could swear the lion looked as though he were listening. Awkwardly patting the mechanical lion's leg, "So, um, do not worry. You know how stubborn the captain is, and well, he will pull through and be back harping at us before you know it." With a final pat on Black's leg, Hunk went to find the technicians to tell them what the crazy mechanic wanted now. As he started walking away, he heard a whisper. Shaking his head at himself, "Now Cady's got me doin' it." But he could have sworn he heard someone say, "Thank you."

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Five hours later, Hunk swapped places with Lt. Grunson. Yellow had taken only minimal damage and only needed some minor repairs before heading back out to the battle. It had turned into a mop-up operation. Nearly a full day after Galaxy Garrison started arriving, and seven days after Lotor had begun his attack, they finally had Lotor's forces in retreat. Keith's sacrifice would not be in vain. The damage to the planet was horrendous. Much of what had been rebuilt over the last four years had been lost. Amazingly enough, the loss of civilian life had been negligible.

Hunk felt extreme pride at being a part of Captain Keith Kogane's team. One of the biggest projects which had happened since the beginning of rebuilding was the construction of shelters for the people in case of attack. Princess Allura had insisted on building them before the construction of any other public building. The lions had greatly facilitated the building of the shelters. Each shelter was accessible by only one main entry point. Each entry point was a narrow fifty foot tunnel. The idea behind the narrow tunnel was that should an attack of great magnitude come, the tunnel could be collapsed preventing any enemy soldiers from capturing the people. If they had to collapse the tunnel, they would send a signal to the castle so when the all clear sounded, someone would come to help clear the tunnel. The shelter complex was also stocked with specialized equipment which would allow the villagers to dig out themselves as needed.

After the entry tunnel, the floor pitched down into a steep slope which wound down like a circular staircase. The real shelter complex was fifty feet below ground. The princess did not want to take any chances an angry Lotor would try to collapse the tunnel network onto the people.

The shelter itself was a very simple design. Each family had a small room for sleeping. The people would share bathing facilities, kitchen, and common areas. The storage areas were divided into three different sections. The first section were the food stuffs. Each village was responsible for maintaining the shelter with adequate food for the population of the village plus a margin for error. The princess had ordered that no less than a six month supply be kept at any given time. In addition to canned foods, there were dehydrated meals, and seeds which could be grown into fresh greens to keep the population healthy.

Then second storage section housed the equipment necessary for long-term occupation. Generators, fuel-cells, oxygen generators, cleaning supplies, clothing, extra bedding, blankets, medical supplies, and anything else the princess, the team, Coran and Nanny thought would be necessary.

The final storage room held munitions. Keith was adamant about providing defense. He had argued with Coran and the Princess until they had thrown their hands up in defeat. Coran and Allura had maintained it was a waste of space and resources when they would have ground and air troops as well as the lions. The Captain had listened to their arguments and then simply affirmed there would be munitions present. In addition he and the other pilots would, as the shelters were complete, provide basic instruction to every person who could hold a weapon in their hands. When the other two tried to argue him, the Captain had looked at both of them and stated in a voice which brooked no argument, "As long as I am Captain of the Voltron Force, Head of Castle Security, and the most senior military person on this planet, I will never leave a single person without the ability to defend themselves again. Never again will the people of Arus cower before the Drule empire. Never again will they huddle in caves in fear. Never again will they face any enemy without the ability to fight back. Never. Again."

Hunk smiled as he remembered. Keith was generally mild-mannered and one of the first to offer compromises. He had shown a very different side of himself that day, one which did not often come to the forefront. The silence in the room had been absolute as he finished speaking. The Princess, Coran, the other members of the Voltron force and other people in the room had just stared at him. After a long pause, the Princess spoke in a very quiet voice, "It will be done as you wish, Captain."

Nodding, Keith had sat down and then turned the discussion to the next point.

Thus the storage rooms with munitions. In addition to small arms, Keith had stocked grenades, grenade launchers, medium artillery, smoke bombs, sniper rifles, and a few other odds and ends depending on how well people of the village took to the Captain's training. Much to the surprise of the Princess, the people of Arus had taken to Keith's plan with a vengeance. She had not realized how helpless many of the people had felt as Zarkon and the Lotor continued to attack. Planetary moral had increased, production had increased, and the overall positive effect of the shelters and the training given by Keith, Hunk, Lance, and Pidge.

Hunk believed it had made all the difference in this latest attack of Lotor. The fighters did not have to worry about protecting people. They knew the majority of Arusians were safe in their shelters. Protecting the real estate of the towns became secondary and they were able to focus on taking out the transport ships, the cruisers, and the RoBeasts. Lotor would waste resources on capturing or destroying people who were not there. Building could be replaced. People could not.

The people of Arus had also joined the fight. Knowing their families were safe, men and women armed themselves from the arsenals Keith had left and fought back. Lotor had to split his forces in multiple directions as fire fights and resistance groups fought wherever they could. Instead of an easily cowed populace, Lotor found himself fighting an entire planet of people determined to kick his ass once and for all time. Hunk had heard how the Captain's declaration of "Never. Again." had become a rallying cry all over the planet. He only wished Keith were awake so they could tease him unmercifully about it. Sighing, he walked over to where Black stood. Stopping, he stared. He could not believe how much the technicians had finished in the five hours he had been gone.

They had repaired the lion's 'eyes' and face. Black stood proud and tall. Of course, there were still technicians surrounding him and wires everywhere. Waving to gain the attention of one of the workers, he inquired about his request for the transmitter. They had just about finished with the repairs and installation of the transmitter. Smiling, Hunk went to check in with the nurse and find something to eat. He would be short sleep a little later, but it would be worth it to reduce the worry in Cady's eyes.

Lance was already crashed in one of the bunks put aside for their use. Hunk let the nurse know what he was doing and that he would come back for a nap as quickly as possible. Since they had all had a decent amount of sleep after Gorma had sedated them, he did not feel bone-draggingly tired. Knowing he would pay for this later, Hunk shrugged off the lack of sleep. It would be long time before anyone would have a decent night's sleep. After they all-clear was given, he would be heading out with Yellow to dig out those people who had collapsed their entry tunnels to the shelters. Plus all the repairs he and Pidge would be doing. Shaking his head, Hunk forced himself to stop making lists. Get through the battle first. Eating a ration bar as he went, the mechanic made his way to his work bench. He would have to scrounge some materials, but he could put together the sound and voice transmitter that Cady said Black wanted.

Two hours later, he had finished. Cleaning his hands, he found a box and put the cobbled together equipment into it and headed to the medical wing. The hospital was filled to over flowing with triage patients waiting in the hallway. It seemed to Hunk that less people were waiting for treatment and the pace less frantic than 24 hour earlier before Garrison had finally arrived. The yellow pilot shied away from the what if thought that tried to go through his mind. Garrison _had_ come and Lotor _was_ retreating. It would be years, if ever he could come with a force that strong. Hunk also knew that Garrison had given the green light on a ferret hunt. Instead of letting Lotor escape, each shipped possible would be marked with a homing beacon and tracked.

Hunk came to abrupt stop at Keith's door. There were at least four nurses in attendance, Dr. Gorma in surgical gear, and much equipment beeping and whirring. Among all the bustle, Keith lay unnaturally still. Hunk had seen Keith hurt, but never before had his presence been missing. It did not seem as though Keith was there in the room. The pilot stood awkwardly in the doorway with his box of equipment. He had not expected so many people to be back in the room. It was not a good sign. Struggling a moment, he finally cleared his throat. Dr. Gorma looked up at Hunk, the turned to say something quietly to one of the nurses. The doctor stepped away from the bed toward the door. He motioned Hunk to follow him into the hallway as the nurses continued to bustle around the room.

"Dr. Gorma, you look like shit, and what is happening with Keith?"

The doctor sighed and leaned against the wall. "We had to install a pacemaker. The Captain's body could not regulate his heart rate as the Agappon collapse continued. I thought he was over the worst of it, but evidence pointed to the contrary. I hope to try and reduce the burned on the captain's body. He has started to run a fever and I cannot pinpoint the origin. The only thing I have to go on is those damn barbs. They were coated in a substance I cannot identify and the captain's blood is a complete mess from the Agappon, the adrenaline, the pain relievers, stim tabs, blood thinners, and all the other meds we gave him during surgeries. I cannot even begin to identify if there is another substance causing trouble. There is little enough I can do to keep him stable. I cannot treat the fever without knowing the origin. Plus his body just cannot handle any more outside substances. It is already on overload and frankly I am amazed we brought him through surgery. His chance of recovery is minimal, but then again he has recovered from everything Doom has thrown at him. I just hope he can delve into that well again and pull through for us one more time." Dr. Gorma stopped and looked up at a stunned Hunk surprised at finding an audience. "Lieutenant, forgive my babbling."

"Doc, is it really that bad? I mean Black said that, well Cady said Black said Keith was far away, but is he really that bad?" Hunk's eyes pleaded with Gorma to tell him some good news.

The doctor sighed and closed his eyes, weary to the bone. "If you are asking what are the captain's odds?" He shook his head, "Pray, Lieutenant, pray. Because I am out of what I can do for him medically. His body is continuing to deteriorate and we cannot seem to stop it. We are going hooking him up to a blood bypass machine. We will spindle his blood through it in an effort to clean out all the remnants of the Agappon and other medicines. Perhaps we can clear out whatever is causing this fever as well. The Garrison surgeon will be arriving at any moment and we are going to find a way to save the captain. By the God and Goddess I will NOT lose him now."

Hunk watched as Dr. Gorma talked himself out of a losing attitude into one he recognized. Shifting the box awkwardly, he realized he would not be telling the rest of the team Gorma's assessment. "Um, Doc, I feel strange asking, but can I hook up this monitor in Keith's room? It's um, hooked into Black, and well, um. Maybe it will help?" Hunk desperately did not want to tell Gorma that Cady was swaying him to her belief about the lions, Black especially.

The doctor was already in another world, "Keep an eye on him and talk to him. Could help, could help. Go right ahead." With that Gorma returned to Keith side to check on the progress of the bypass machine. Hunk went in behind him and quickly set up the communication box. All he really had to do was find an out of the way spot with a view of the bed and start it. It had a stand alone power source to not drain anything vital. Finally, he set it on the table where the nurses sat to monitor Keith and pressed the on switch. Picking up the box he headed to the door when he heard an exclamation. With no forth coming explanation and no further excitement, Hunk went off to worry and then try to grab some sleep before his next shift with Yellow.

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Nanny and Coran were summoned to the medical ward. They arrived and were directed to Gorma's office where they found the usually unflappable doctor slumped back in his chair, feet on his desk, a large drink in his hand, looking worn. Gorma looked at his two long time friends and associates. The following discussion would be heartrending to all of them. Gorma did not even bother to straighten up as they skipped the pleasantries. He gestured with his glass to the decanter and glasses for them to share the bad news. It would be a long night or was it day?

"Tell me what is happening outside." He did not want to address the topic which brought them all here.

Coran looked at his friend of long standing and took a sip. "Lotor's forces are finally in retreat. Forces from several of our allies arrived, and it has become a rout for Lotor. The order came in from Garrison. No mercy."

Gorma nodded and swirled the liquid in his glass before motioning Coran to continue.

"Several ships are firing homing missals on any ship trying to retreat. The plan is to break into several divisions after the last enemy has left orbit and give them two choices; completely surrender or destruction. Then the cleanup will begin. We have received several messages that we can expect help in that quarter. Six planets and two alliances have let us know that volunteers are gathering and ships are preparing to bring supplies, manpower, and equipment to fix what has been destroyed. Early estimates show that nearly all the crops for the year will be accounted a total loss. We will need to dip into the gene banks again to reproduce some of the animals lost again to Doom." Coran paused and took another sip. "I will be savoring this, it will be several years before another batch of Linto brandy can be produced."

Magda (Nanny) looked over at Gorma. "Mikko, why did you really ask us here?"

The doctor just sighed and leaned his head back against the chair and closed his eyes. "I just finished yet another surgery on Captain Kogane. I am hoping that installing a pacemaker will reduce the stress on his body. He is having more backlash from the Agappon than I had expected. There are some things which I need to discuss with Allura and for that conversation, I need your help." Gorma paused to gather his thoughts, this was not a conversation he relished. "Keith's chances of recovery are minimal at best. Frankly, if he regains consciousness at all it will be a testament to his inability to ever quit. He left some instructions regarding his wishes. The captain researched Arusian law quite thoroughly before making some decisions regarding Cady. She has few memories of Earth and he was concerned if something should happen to him, she would be forced back to her family she knows only through brief visits, and exchanged letters. I would not bring this up now, but it looks as though the captain's recovery will be quite long." The doctor opened a drawer and pulled out an official looking document. "This gives Allura the right to keep Cady on Arus and look after her as her guardian. In accordance to Arusian law, he named the two of you as her watchers."

Coran looked stunned, and Magda had to wipe a tear from her face. "Why tell us this now?"

Gorma looked at both of them, "I do not want to be the one deciding what to tell Cady about her Dad. I cannot say with any certainty he will ever wake. Hell, I cannot say he will live through the next hour. The captain left the decision when and if to tell you. So, I am dumping at least this part of the mess squarely on someone shoulders that are not mine."

Silence met the doctor's pronouncement. Neither Coran nor Magda could think of a response. Finally, Coran broke the silence, "Tell me of the Captain's status."

"Physically his body is a wreck. Literally. He has a broken foot, several broken ribs, multiple cuts and contusions, probably a mild concussion. A spine pierced through his left shoulder and blood flow to his hand was lessened considerably. He may have permanent damage to both the shoulder and to his hand. We will be able to do some repair to any nerve damage, but only if the captain wakes soon and we can do tests to determine how much if any mobility he has lost. His right arm took the brunt of the attack and many of the barbs penetrated deeply into the muscles. The barbs were dug out one by one, but more damage occurred than I like. The results of the Agappon on top of the physical damage just compound everything. Many of the treatments for muscle generation and nerve repair will just exacerbate the problems with his heart. I cannot give him pain medication because it will depress his heart and lungs. I cannot give him treatment for the muscle damage because it speeds up the heart, in his case dangerously. In fact I cannot do much of anything except watch this poor man's condition deteriorate before my eyes! If I do not treat him, he could have permanent damage, if I treat him it could kill him. Tell me, Coran what should I do?" Gorma realized at some point he had stood and was yelling directly at Coran. He sat down abruptly and realized his hands were shaking and Magda was wiping a tear from the corner of her right eye. Mikko buried his face in his hands, elbows on his desk. He heard the sound of a chair scraping against the floor, then the clink of crystal. His refilled glass was pushed to his elbow.

"A toast," said Coran.

Both men and Nanny stood holding their glasses. "To the best man this planet could have ever hoped to know, and the many years we will keep him here."

All three raised their glasses, and then drank the contents. Three friends looked at the glasses in their hands. Three glasses shattered against the wall in quick succession. Three silent people left the room. Two to discuss what they would do. One to try and find the oblivion from thought sleep would provide.

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	7. Waiting begins, updated

The captain had finally stabilized. Gorma had slept undisturbed for seven hours, the longest since the attacks had begun. While he had followed his own advice about sleeping and rotating out of the hospital, the days had taken its toll. The hospital at the castle and the outlying clinics and medic stations had done as much preparation as possible. Kits with everything needed to treat a specific injury had been prepared throughout Arus. As the kits were used, those unable to return to battle or repair work were making new kits. Outside of the hospital, the injured worked wherever they could. The worst of the injured were evacuated to the caverns and rescue shelters.

While Mikko broke his fast, he reviewed the records of his hospital. Supplies were in better shape that he could have hoped. Cloth bandages had been washed and restocked by non-medical staff. Those soldiers had also kept the place organized and made the jobs of the trained staff much easier. Many of the soldiers had first aid knowledge and could assist with non-life threatening injuries, again freeing the trained staff to attend others. They had lost fewer soldiers to injuries that even the best predictions. Dr. Gorma had expected a 10 causality rate for the most critically injured soldiers. Smiling, Mikko saw the rate was only 5. Half of the expected. He credited the preparation, and the military staff assistance as key to the drop.

Finally, Gorma switched to the update on Captain Kogane's condition. The good news was he had stabilized and not lost any further ground. However he still ran a fever even after spindling his blood and they still could not identify the source. Although they kept him on high potency TPNs, fighting the fever was taking all that energy. It did not leave much left over for recovery. Mikko wrote a note to increase the dosage of the antipyretic hoping to reduce the fever.

The nurses had notice something odd. After Lt. Garrett had turned on the device he had brought, the captain's heart had briefly sped up before resuming a more normal rate. There had also been a brief moment where one nurse said she 'felt' him. That particular nurse had tested slightly sensitive as a child, so Gorma took that as a good sign. He looked to see if anything further had come of the testing of the substance on the spines embedded in the captain. The report indicated it was an alkaloid of unknown origin and they were looking to see what effect it had on rats. The initial results should be in shortly. The doctor had only allowed one of the lab technicians to do the testing, he could not even spare the one body, but Mikko had made the decision. He had promised himself to do everything in his power to save Captain Kogane, even if they ran a little short handed. It was not as imperative now as a few hours earlier.

The captain had shown no signs of waking, not completely unexpected. Between the Agappon, exhaustion, injuries, two surgeries, lack of food for days had left his body in need of recovery. The only aspect which worried the doctor was the lack of higher brain functions from the captain. While the captain did breath on his own, and aside from the pace maker did not require any assistance with body functions, it was not a good sign he showed no signs of dreaming or deeper thought. Again, Mikko did not know if this was because of the Agappon, and other issues, but it bore watching. He had checked with his staff, and the various original team members had stopped to check on the captain and visit with him for a few minutes. Cady had only been allowed a few short visits with her Dad because the danger had not yet passed.

Gorma sighed, finished his kava and headed to do rounds on all his patients. Injuries had dropped significantly in the last day as Lotor's armada finally began its retreat. His uninterrupted sleep showed that the relief troops could care for the critically wounded and Mikko could now focus on the patients already treated. He believed this to be a good thing. His staff had worked under extreme conditions and deserved a lessening of the frantic pace maintained over the course of the first six days.

The doctor planned on checking on each of the critical patients and slowly moving the most injured back to the hospital. Many of the surgeries had been patch jobs, or the minimal amount they could do to stabilize the patient until the attack passed. He knew some of the injured would need second surgeries to finish attending to injuries, and many of those with broken bones still needed a polymer injection to stabilize the breaks. They had run out of the polymer on day three. Unfortunately, it could not be synthesized rapidly. He had one of the techs working on it the last few days. It would bring relief to those who had been splinted or given temporary casts until now.

Once the moves for the critical patients had begun, he would check on Captain Kogane's progress and then move back to surgery. Realistically, he knew that only time would tell if the captain would survive, but Mikko could not help but check several times a day. If prayers and good will did work miracles, then the people of Arus, when they found out about the captain, would be sending more than enough toward the captain to make him jump out of bed and start dancing. One could only hope.

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Lance sat in the chair near Keith's bed, giving him the latest news. As of several hours previous, Lotor's fleet had completely withdrawn from Arusian space and broken into a dozen factions in different directions. The alliance had marked as many ships with homing beacons as possible. Orders stated no quarter to be given. Every ship had the option of unconditional surrender or destruction. The alliance had come to end the threat of Lotor once and for all. When Lotor's fleet had retreated, confusion had reigned supreme. No one had anticipated how many directions they would flee. Mop-up operations could take months or perhaps years. The garrison would not be able to spare the fleet for very long as the Drule conflict continued in other parts of the galaxy. Volton would be needed for quite some time.

The first step would be to locate the base Lotor had been using. Thus far, none of the special investigators had been able to uncover any leads. Wherever Lotor had hidden, he had not even allowed supply ships to have the coordinates. All traders who had dealings with Lotor had been met in neutral territory, relieved of their goods, given payment (in some cases) and then told to leave. The receiving ships did not leave their orbits until the trader ships were out of range.

Surrendering ships' computers had been wiped clean and the navigation chips melted before being handed over to the allies. Even if the ships could have avoided capture, without navigation, they could not even find a safe place to land. Garrison had to use guide ships to land the larger carriers and transports, archaic, but effective.

Dr. Gorma had given orders that both teams from the lions were to be grounded for 24 hours. The good doctor had made sure to tell Coran, Magda, and the Garrison and allied ships the pilots would be unavailable except for dire emergencies. Rarely did Dr. Gorma pull his rank as physician on the team, but in this case he determined they would be more danger to others and themselves if they did not have some down time and some recovery time. Even the princess did not argue this time. Of course, she wanted nothing more than to sit with Keith until he opened his eyes. When Lance had asked, Dr. Gorma had not given any estimate as to when that would happen. Keith had not twitched in the entire time Lance had been sitting there, filling him in on the details of the last day.

He had never seen his friend lie so still. Keith had spent more than his fair share of time in the hospital, but Lance had never seen him lie so still. Always, even unconscious, Keith felt, well, _there_.

Frustrated, the red pilot stood and paced the room, needing some kind of activity. He passed the box Hunk had set up in the room. Black Lion had not yet returned to service. The damage had been more extensive than Keith had ever let on to the rest of the team. The technicians had reported some strange goings-on with Black. Systems would suddenly come on-line without needing any repair, and systems which should work perfectly after hours of repair still did not function. It seemed the lion was in as bad shape as its pilot.

Muttering under his breath, Lance resisted the urge to bash the chair or a pillow or any other non-essential item in the room. The last time that had happened, the good doctor had banished Lance for the duration of the captain's stay. He did not want that repeated. Damn Keith and his oh-so-noble sentiments. He could have told them what he had planned. But no, Captain-do-it-all could not step down from his lofty perch to allow the other mere mortal members of the team to help. Just let the rest of the team think he was following the same pattern as the rest of them Captain-stoic-I-can-handle-more-than-everyone-else.

Of course, none of them gave a thought as to who was spelling Keith in the Black. Without Sven on planet, only Allura could pilot Voltron's head. Sighing, Lance gave the captain a break. Did he really have any other choice? Yes, Allura could fly Black, but she did not have the stamina of the rest of the pilots. In addition to flying and defending her planet, she also headed the government and all that entailed. Her duties pulled her in so many directions during the day, it was a wonder she slept at all. Towns sent people to be trained to govern as they recovered. It took time to train everyone, and until more had training, the burden of government fell centrally.

Allura had a vision for the planet. Eventually, she wanted a supportive central government but where most of the decisions originated with a small council within each township. It would be several generations before any one area would be large enough to sustain government as a career, but until that time part time councilors would fulfill the needs. Those coming for training learned diplomacy, accounting, budgeting, and some planning crammed into as short a time frame as possible.

Most of the ruling body of the planet had died in the first waves of Doom's attacks. The Doomite invaders had specifically targeted places of government to throw the population into as much panic as possible and to lower the chances of resistance cells quickly growing. Without traditional leadership, it would take time for the masses to move from panic to action. Arus had learned that Haggar had worked behind the scenes for many months before the official invasion to learn the identities of the most effective leaders. With the knowledge her spies brought back, few of those who could have mounted any resistance survived the first day of the attacks.

The witch had also released a spell designed to incite panic and confusion among the largest population areas, effectively making the task of gathering slaves a picnic. They ran to the first voice of reason they could hear, which happened to be an Arusian sounding voice urging them onto the transport ships as a place of safety. Doom did not have to gather the people for slavery, they came rushing toward it eagerly.

Dropping back into the chair with a thump, Lance leaned forward, elbows on his knees, wrists crossed, and head bent. For four years, he had watched the people of Arus come from the caves where they had lived in fear, the remnants of Haggars spell upon them. The people had returned to find only the memories of their homes remaining. Zarkon had ordered no stone left piled on another, not a wall standing, nothing but dust. The RoBeasts and soldiers had nearly accomplished that. Some people could not even find a clearing where their homes had stood. All had been erased.

At least this time, some homes had not fallen to the destructiveness of Lotor's forces. As the invading force found abandoned village after village, some had taken their frustrations out on the buildings. In some areas, the people would have much rebuilding to accomplish. Other areas, the gorilla tactics used by the Arusians had chased of the invaders before much destruction occurred. This time they would not slowly stave in caves, afraid to venture forth, afraid of any person, or anyone approaching.

With all his heart, Lance wished Keith awake to see how the people had pushed back the invaders. To see the start of celebrations and the ideas beginning to flow regarding rebuilding. In some areas, fighting continued as Lotor's forces refused to surrender. The stand down alert had not yet sounded, but every hour brought word of more soldiers surrendering and laying down their arms. Without aerial support, they could not hope to overpower the combined might of Garrison ships and the people's will.

Lance let his head drop to his hands. Any other time, he could imagine Keith stirring and demanding information, but his friend stayed all too still. Finally, Lance could not stand the quiet any longer, and with a good-bye to his commander, walked out of the room and down the hallway. As he left, a quiet sound starting emanating from the box Hunk had set up on Cady's request. The heart monitor sped up for several heart beats before returning to its quiet steady beat.

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	8. Waiting, part II

Allura sat in her office scrolling through the various reports beginning to pour in from all parts of the planet. The outlying areas showed light damage and few casualties. The larger towns and trade centers had suffered the worst of the attacks. It repeated the pattern of Zarkon's first attacks. The population centers gave the best return on investment in terms of slaves and loot.

The population centers had lost more people and suffered a much greater level of destruction. Zarn, the second largest city in terms of population, had lost three-quarters of the buildings to Lotor's troops. Casualty reports for Zarn indicated heavy losses among fighters and military personnel. As a percentage, the loss of civilian life was exceedingly low.

The pattern repeated itself throughout every report she read. Finally, she put her head down on the desk and just lay there for several minutes, too many thoughts and emotions flowing through her to sort one from anther. Allura felt tired. Tired of war. Tired of fighting. Fighting against Lotor or some other force wanting to take over Arus. Fighting against the counselors of the cities and towns as to who could have what, when and how much.

Sitting up slowly, Allura looked at her hands; callused and scarred from war and rebuilding. They did not look like the hands of any other princess she knew, with the exception of Romelle. But then they both had the same problems. Both from war torn worlds. Both victims of Lotor. Both in love with pilots. Allura let the thought trail off in her mind and then sighed. Why not pursue the thought, it was not like it would go away.

Keith would know just what to say to bring her out of her funk. If nothing else he would raise a supercilious eyebrow at her and declare her work-day temporarily ended. It had become his pattern over the last few years.

When they had first emerged from the caves and begun to fight for the planet, Allura had done her best to avoid the captain. After overhearing some remarks he made to Lance, the princess felt sure that he thought of her as only a child. She had determined to prove him wrong. Laughing quietly, Allura though of how, in may ways, she had just proven him right.

At the same time, he treated her with respect and courtesy. Always giving her the courtesy of listening to her ideas and never directly disparaging them. Coran had once commented how well the captain could use a few simple questions to bring someone around to his point of view or to show them what was incorrect about their proposal. Although he could and did become immovable on a subject, Keith rarely verbally put his foot down on any subject. A born diplomat, is how Coran referred to him. Flexible when needed and harder than diamond and just as rigid when required.

Several weeks after she had foolishly taken Blue out without permission, Keith had found her in one of the less damaged rooms. When it became known she would not be a temporary pilot, it had caused some small panics among the counselors. A proper princess did not deliberately put herself in harm's way. She courted disaster, and what would Arus do without her?

He had entered the room quietly and stood behind her for several minutes and the objections continued to pour fourth. Finally, he had rapped lightly on the table. "Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen." Somehow his quiet voice carried through the din and quieted the room. "Princess Allura has accepted the position of Blue pilot. Until such time as she shows incompetence in the role, or can no longer perform the function she will do so. The matter is solely under my discretion."

Allura almost giggled at the stunned and astonished expressions of the people in the room. She managed to keep her expression under control and the captain continued.

"Thank you for your concern, it is duly noted." He turned to Allura, completely ignoring the rest of the room. "Your Highness, practice was to commence at 1000 hours. It is now, "the captain paused to check his time piece, "1023. You are to report immediately to the deployment area. At 2000 you will report to my office for your punishment detail for tardiness." He turned back to the room, "Excuse us, ladies and gentlemen." With a quick curtsy to the room, Allura hurried off to the chutes. Pausing on the threshold, he turned back to the still quiet room. "The defense of this planet and its people WILL take precedence over any other discussions. Galaxy Garrison has entrusted me to this position and then confirmed by Princess Allura. You will be invaluable in rebuilding this world and protecting it from all who would cause harm. In this room lies the future of Arus. I am a simple soldier, but you are the lifeblood of this planet and I know the princess has entrusted you with helping to bring Arus back to life. While the Voltron Force may ensure the safety, it is you who will bring this planet to glory. Thank you for making our task simple." With a courtly bow, he left the stunned room behind him.

Since that time, whenever Coran or Keith believed she worked too hard or needed a break, he simply declared her work day over until further notice. After that first meeting, no one would dare argue with him on the subject. With that one small speech, everyone had assumed the captain had precedence on her time. In a few short weeks time, he had trained not only Allura, but those who made demands on her time. If Keith did not actively participate in a meeting, his arrival would put a quick end to it. Sometimes it was the only way Allura had any time to relax.

Pondering the subject further, she thought of how he ran the Voltron Force. When running drills, battles, or training sessions he was The Captain. No arguing, no second guessing him, no questions. He encouraged input as time allowed before making any decision and did not hesitate to ask for assistance when needed, but once he made an order, Keith expected to be asked 'how high' as they jumped into the air.

It made an interesting dichotomy to compare his different roles. A somewhat dictatorial tyrant (in a good way!) Allrua's mind said, as a Captain. A suave diplomat when needed. The consummate organizer and _always_ over planning for everything. As a father. Oh, he certainly made his share of mistakes, and he defiantly had an interesting style of parenting, but once Allura had heard the stories of the events surrounding and after Cady's birth, it made things very clear. She had just about memorized the stories Lance, Hunk, Pidge, and even Sven had told her through the years. Leaning back and closing her eyes she could just picture it.

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	9. Interlude Cady

Author's note: I would greatly appreciate some feedback on this particular section. Thank you!

--Kristina

--

"She's crowing! Ok, just a few more pushes," the doctor encouraged her patient. "You are doing well. Ok here it comes and puuussssh. Ok, wait, wait next the shoulders. Dad, come here you can catch her as she comes." The proud father did not wait for a second invitation, but took the doctor's place and put his hand where he was told. With a last surge, the baby came, right into his hands. She was so tiny he could hardly believe it. With brisk efficiency they cut the cord and bundled her up in a soft towel, to allow the parents the first few minutes with their new daughter.

He walked to the side of the bed, "Pat, look. She's beautiful!" He leaned over to share their daughter but Pat turned her head to the side.

"I'm tired. This has not been a walk in the park you know!"

The nurse walked over, "We need to examine her and give her an apgar score. Dad, can we have the baby for just a minute. We will give her right back." The father reluctantly handed over his daughter, and turned back to his wife. "What shall we name her, honey."

The woman just glared at her husband. "You pick I do not care at the moment."

"How about Catherine? We can call her Cady for short, until she grows into her name." He looked over to see if the nurses were about done. They seemed to be doing mysterious things with her. "Are you going to nurse her? The books say babies want to nurse after birth."

Pat glared at her husband, "I told you, I am not nursing. As soon as I can I am taking the meds to keep my milk from coming in. You deal with it."

He opened his mouth to respond, but the nurse came back with his daughter. He took her awkwardly as the nurse guided him to a rocking chair. He started talking nonsense to her in a soft voice. After a few minutes a nurse brought him a bottle and helped him position Cady and start her on her first feeding. He looked up to his wife to share this moment with her. The doctor and nurse were finishing whatever mysterious things they do after a baby was born and she was determined to look anywhere but her husband and child. He just sighed and turned his attention back to Cady.

Later the nurse showed him how to change a diaper, how to make the bottle, how to give her a bath, and a list of other things new parents should know. Pat lay in bed flipping through the channels. Cady's dad sighed and then went to lay on the partner's bed with his new daughter whispering he would never leave her if it was in his power. Catherine fell asleep to her fathers baritone singing very mixed up lullabies.

The next day Pat asked him to take Cady for a walk so she could shower and ready herself for discharge. When the two came back, there was a packet on the bed, but no Pat. Inside were three things; the paper he had signed acknowledging Cady as his daughter, a notarized copy of a document whereby Pat relinquished all parental rights, and divorce papers with a court date in one week. "Oh Cady, what are we going to do?" Keith asked.

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Two days later, Keith sat with Cady in the office of Commander Kane, head of the Galaxy Garrison Academy. "And that is the whole sordid story, sir." He looked briefly down at the child sleeping in his arms, and then back at the Commander. "I need to be able to provide for Cady and I do not want to lose my scholarship, but I do not want to give her up either. What can I do, sir?"

Commander Kane looked at the earnest young man seated before him. This was a interesting dilemma. While he had incidents of cadets marrying and having unexpected children, this was the first case he could recollect where the mother up and left her husband and child less than a full day after the child was born. He had known Cadet Kogane had married, the paperwork for permission had crossed his desk just over ten months ago. Kane remember the situation well. He had heard through the grapevine the young lady in question had been in pursuit of Kogane for several months, but he was not interested in a casual fling. Somehow she had convinced him to propose, more for a lark than anything else. Kane also knew it had been something of a bet to see who could break through the defenses of the young man. Well, the young lady had succeeded, but had not taken into account that birth control occasionally failed. That was neither here nor there. While he was pondering the situation, the baby began fussing. The cadet reached down to pick up a bottle he had in a small bag next to the chair. Setting it on his lap, he reached to the other side of the bag and pulled out a small bottle of water. Awkwardly opening both bottles, he poured the water into the powdered formula. Returning the now empty water bottle, the young dad screwed on the top of the bottle. He gave it a few shakes and then turned the baby on his lap so he could feed her. The child promptly quieted. Commander Kane was impressed by the cadet's instincts. Garrison certainly did not want to lose this young man. "Cadet Kogane," he began, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. His assistant poked his head through the door, "Excuse the disturbance, commander, but there are four young men who wish to join the discussion."

"Were you expecting anyone, Cadet?"

Keith shook his head, confused. Commander Kane was curious. "Send them in, corporal."

The door opened wider and in walked an unexpected combination of people; Cadets Lance Charles McClain, Darrell "Pidge" Stoker, Tsuyoshi "Hunk" Garett, and Sven Holgerson. Cadet Kogane looked as though someone had taken a board to the back of his head. He obviously had no idea the four were coming. The four arranged themselves behind Kogane and then one of them cleared his throat and stepped forward. "Permission to speak, sir?"

"Permission granted, Cadet McClain." Commander Kane was even more curious. Lance McClain was no stranger to his office. He caused more commotion and mischief than any other three cadets combined. Often Cadets Holgersson and Kogane had also graced his offices, often trying to keep their friend out of more trouble. He could understand those two coming here, but what were Cadets Stoker and Garett doing here? As far as he knew, they did not associate with much with the other three. Stoker was significantly younger than the other four, not quite 15 years of age to their 19 or 20. Garett was a gifted mechanic and technical whiz, there was not a piece of equipment he could not take apart and reassemble improved, but again he did not seem to fit with the other four.

Lance took a deep breath. "Sir, we would like to offer a possible solution to the challenges faced by Cadet Kogane, sir."

"Go on, Cadet."

Lance looked back at the other three and then at his friend and gave him a small wink. "Yes sir. You see, sir, we know Keith, er, Cadet Kogane wants to keep Cady with him so we came up with a solution. We think we have worked out a schedule among the five of us so someone would always have Cady, sir, and we have a solution for the housing problem as well, sir." He looked back at Pidge who handed a data pad to the Commander. "As you can see, sir, there is an apartment slated to open next week when the current cadets are slated to ship out. Sir, I know it is against policy to allow second year cadets to have an apartment but not against regulations. If you see, we have referenced the proper regulations. Since it is a four bedroom apartment, we thought Keith and Cady could have one room, and the four of us would share the other three. It would take an override from you, sir, to move us to the top of the waiting list. We know Keith had already applied for a smaller one it would just take a little shuffling. Sir." He abruptly stopped talking, and the room was silent except for the small sounds Cady was making as she ate. Commander Kane scrolled through the data pad, not letting any expression show on his face but impressed by the proposal the four of them had put together in less than a day. He noticed they were proposing shuffling of some classes to accommodate the physical training they all had to do. He was more impressed by the amount of loyalty they had for Cadet Kogane.

Kane sat the data pad to the side, folded his hands together and looked at all five young men. He noticed Keith carefully set the now empty bottle back in its spot and pick up a small cloth which he put over his shoulder. He carefully patted Cady on the back and she let out a small sigh, snuggled in close. Almost absently, her dad gave her a kiss on her head. That decided Kane. He smiled inwardly, but he was not going to let these boys know what a softy he really was!

"I can understand why Cadets McCain and Holgersson would come to offer their help. Cadets Stoker and Garett, why have you come forward."

Pidge and Hunk looked at each other, a little nervous. They had not expected to need to speak to the Commander. Lance and Sven had convinced them this would work. Hunk swallowed hard, "Sir." He paused and looked at Keith who gave him a little nod. Hunk relaxed slightly and let the words come. "Sir," he said a little stronger, "as you know I do well with practical application but often the theory leaves me struggling. Cadet Kogane noticed I was often asked to stay behind after tests to discuss them with the professors. Last year I was put on academic probation if I did not improve my grades. I guess when I found out, I felt a little dazed. All I ever wanted to do was join Galaxy Garrison and build things. That day, Keith asked me to join his study group. Within a few weeks, they had me caught up in all the classes and I started passing tests with high marks." He paused and looked directly at Keith, "Yesterday I learned he had found out about the academic probation and created the study group for me so I would not have to leave." He finished in a hurry and quickly stepped back in place, surreptitiously wiping his brow.

Pidge stepped forward and gave his story speaking quickly out of nerves. "Sir, Commander Kane sir. Two years ago when I came to Garrison Prep to join the senior class I ran into some difficulties. Even though I passed on all the academic levels, being small and young I did not fit in any group. All I knew was books and felt out of place and very homesick. In addition, there were some. . . incidents with older and larger boys who were upset when I surpassed them in all their academic classes. One day three boys had me cornered in the bathroom and where threatening," the young man paused and blushed, "to give me a swirley. Cadet Kogane came in the bathroom saying he had been looking for me. He just ignored the other three and I followed him out into the hallway. He said he needed some help in his physics class and since I was the best in the physics class he was hoping to trade some lessons in Tai Chi or another martial arts discipline for some tutoring in physics. I agreed and we made arrangements of when and where to meet. For the rest of the semester I had no further problems from any other student. Last year he asked if we could continue the exchange because he could always use the help. Later on he asked if we could expand to include some other people who needed help. That is when Cadets McClain, Garett, and Holgersson joined us for a regular study table." He looked at Keith and licked his lips, "I learned yesterday he never needed help in physics, but wanted to give me a way to better defend myself without taking away my pride. I also learned the reason the others stopped bothering me is Cadet Kogane gave an open demonstration of his ability with Tai Chi and mentioned during the demonstration I had agreed to tutor him and he would take it amiss if anything happened to his tutor." Pidge stepped back to stand next to Hunk, emphasizing the disparity of size between the two of them.

Sven stepped forward, "Eef Keit had not stood by Lance and I, ve vould have long since been asked to leave. Ve know ve can cause a bit of trouble, but Cadet Kogane has taken blame even ven he vas not dere." His accent came out extra thick as it always did when he was nervous. He looked at Lance to take over so the Commander could understand.

"The three of us have been together since the first year of prep. Our families are far away and the three of us came together to build a new one." He shrugged, "Cady just gives us more reason to stay out of trouble and makes our family bigger. Sir."

He stepped back and joined the line behind Keith. Commander Kane looked long at each of the five Cadets. The wheels were turning in his head. What a formidable team the five of them would make. Kogane seemed to have the ability to not only draw people together, but bring out the best of them. Garrison could simply not afford to lose them and these four were offering him the perfect way to keep him. It seemed nearly too good to be true, but Commander Kane was not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. He looked at Kogane, who was still looking rather stunned. Kogane did not even realize how he drew people to him. The young man was too humble for his own good. Finally Kane spoke, "I will have to take this to committee, but if you are serious about this," he paused and each young man nodded emphatically, "then I will recommend adoption of your plan, pending review by the head of academics, Captain Janis. The five of you are ordered to report to my office at 0800 hours tomorrow morning for the final decision. Dismissed." Keith stood and the five of them saluted, although with Keith saluting with a baby over one shoulder, Kane was hard pressed not to smile. Keith squatted and grabbed the small bag at his side and the five of the filed out of his office.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When they exited from the building they all stopped and looked at one another. Pidge, Sven, Hunk, and Lance all whooped and gave each other high fives. Lance grabbed Sven and spun him around in an impromptu dance. "I think we did it!" He let go of Sven to reach to take Cady from her daddy and smile at her. "Uncle Lance. Can you say Uncle Lance is the greatest uncle of them all." Pidge and Hunk went to stand near them as they woke Cady from her nap. She did not fuss, but just looked up at whoever what standing over her.

Sven walked over to Keith who had not said a word, just stood there holding the bag in a loose hand. "Keit? Are you alright?"

Keith looked at Sven, "I do not understand, why would you guys do this?" Confusion and hope filled his eyes,

"How could ve not? You are our bruder. Besides, ve lost the lottery. No von else vanted to chance vat vould happen. You scared dem all avay vit you vanting to show everyvon her sonogram picture. It vould just be vurse vonce she vas born."

Keith blushed and then wiped his eye. "Dust," he mumbled. Then walked over to the other three. "Hey, no corrupting the newborn!"

Unbeknownst to them, Commander Kane and Captain Janis had watched it all from the upstairs window. Janis had listened to the whole meeting, agreeing with Kane's sentiments. They did not want to lose these young men, and if accommodating Kogane with his daughter kept them, it was a small sacrifice to make.

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Two days later

"So how did this apartment suddenly become available? It is even better than the one we found?" Lance asked Pidge as they hauled boxes up the stairs. "How much more time do we have before Sven comes with Keith? Does Hunk have the crib put together yet?"

"Someone call my name?" Hunk emerged from the bedroom with a tool chest. "Easy breezy. Even had time to set up a mobile for the kid. Traded some time at the repair bay for an old holographic projector. I hooked in an old music player with a timer. Our little girl will be able to fall asleep to anything we wish while watching visions of sugar plums dancing on her walls!"

"Trust Hunk to make everything into a food reference," Lance joked as he set down the two boxes he had been carting up the stairs. "Whew, that is the last of it. Who would have know one little kid could need so much stuff."

Indeed the apartment's living room looked like a display from a department store. A high chair, which Cady would not need for a while, swing, changing table, stroller, and various nifty toys her uncles had found in the last two days littered the floor, table, couches and chairs. Keith did not know how many friends he had made in the last 4 ½ years at the school. Once his predicament became known, spread by Lance, people had approached on of Cady's four 'uncles' to see how they could help. People knew better than to approach Kogane, as he would gracefully thank them for the offer and turn it down without the giver realizing it until the end of the conversation.

While many of the items came second hand, everything was in excellent condition.

"Guys, hate to interrupt, but we should expect Sven with Keith and Cady in about 30 minutes." All three paused to look dismayed at the mess in the apartment. Without another word, Hunk began breaking down the boxes to take out to recycle, Lance started throwing toys in a smaller box, and Pidge started putting away the bigger pieces. Military training had the room mostly straightened within ten minutes. All that remained was to make beds and stash the still packed boxes in closets.

Lance shoved a last box in the cupboard, carefully closing it to keep the stack from falling. Leaning against the door, he thumbed at it, "Let Sven open this one!" The other two laughed. They heard Sven's loud voice coming down the hallway. "Just vanted to pop in quick on a couple friends, Keit. Come in a minute."

Scrambling, the other three picked some different piece of furniture to lounge on as though they had not spent a frantic morning readying the place. Surreptitiously, Lance shoved a box behind the couch.

In the hallway, Keith carried a sleeping Cady in a wrap following Sven's lead. Looking around the complex, he hoped the student housing Pidge had found for them would be as nice as this one. It had formerly housed visiting faculty and been used as a hotel. A new hotel and temporary housing facility had opened only three years previously. The school renovated this complex, simply called Complex A, for use as student housing and typically reserved for upper classmen and those interested in serious study. Each year the residents gathered for a meeting to determine quiet hours dedicated to study.

Muted colors lined the hallways in demure blues, greens, and swirls of pinks and yellows to break the monotony. The apartments had simple color schemes in beiges and off-whites. The school had allowed the students to retain possession of any useful furniture which had remained from the days as a hotel and temporary housing unit. Some of the furniture was in better shape than others, but no one complained. At least it cut down on costs of having to purchase furniture! The school also provided basic kitchen supplies; a few pots, plates, glasses, mugs, and silverware. Any thing else would have to be provided by the students.

The school did offer barrack housing to whomever wished to take advantage of it at no additional cost. The prep school children did not have a choice in housing and lived in dormitory style housing with floor monitors or house mothers. The school also assigned each child an older mentor their first year to help make the adjustment to school and living away from home. Typically children did not enter prep school until 15, but exceptions did occur.

The thoughts flashed through Keith's mind quickly, and he did not dwell upon them. Sven had arrived at a door. He grinned at Keith and quickly opened the door instead of knocking. Walking in the room he gestured Keith to follow. Shrugging he complied and then stopped dead in his tracks and he saw his four friends grinning like Cheshire cats at him.

Looking around the apartment he noticed a baby swing next to one of the chairs, a changing table against a wall, and his suspiciously smug friends. He swallowed against a lump in his throat and threw a telling look at Lance. "Go look in there, Keith." He simply stated pointed to one of the four bedrooms.

Without saying anything, Keith walked over and opened the bedroom. He felt his chest tighten momentarily as he looked in the room. Every surface in the room sparkled. A beautiful wooden crib and matching dresser stood along one side wall. Mounted above the crib an electronic gadget projected an underwater hologram into the crib with soft music playing. In the crib sat the largest stuffed lion Keith had ever seen and a pink sheet covered the matters. Over the side of the crib Keith recognized a hand made quilt with the unmistakable stamp of Sven's mother. The dresser had already been filled with clothes in various sizes for Cady, most of it very practical for an on-the-go parent. Turning to face the room, he found instead of the standard twin bed, a double bed with enough room for he and Cady. Opening the closet, he found his uniforms already hung up on one side with a dresser and the rest of his clothes on the other. The room did not have any more space for a desk, but he was sure they could set one up in the other room.

Looking at the threshold, he saw his friends all gathered there, with unrepentant grins on their faces. "I," Keith started to say, only to have it come out as a croak. He cleared his throat and turned instead toward the crib and lay his hand on the quilt. Carefully he lifted Cady out of her wrap and gently lay her on the side opposite the lion. She stirred slightly, then quieted. Blinded by unexpected tears, he fought for control while watching his daughter through blurred vision. A few moments later, Lance came to stand beside the crib and look at Cady. The two friends stood for several minutes in silence, looking at the little girl.

Finally, Lance put his hand on his best friend's shoulder. A few moments later Sven lay his hand on the other shoulder. "Ve know."

A single tear traced its way down the young man's face as he stood over his daughter, his friends standing in solidarity beside him.


	10. Hunk & Cady

Hunk lay underneath Black's control panel. Carefully he placed the panel, which had taken most of the morning to rebuild, into place. Holding it with one hand, he reached down for the screwdriver to fasten it with a deft hand honed by hours of practice. Blowing out a breath, he inched his way out from underneath the panel. _Good thing we removed the pilot's chair, _he thought, _this would be a tight fit otherwise. Of course we will have to repair the chair as well. That last RoBeast did a number on it with those spine things. Huh, wonder if they saved any so I could do my own analysis. _

He patted the console and smiled. "There you go, Black. One rebuilt navigation panel with a few little improvements Pidge and I have wanted to try for a bit. Now, let's just see how it is working." Hunk continued to talk aloud as he entered the startup sequence. It had long been a habit of his to talk to the machinery he repaired. Sometimes just talking through a problem helped him fix it. Of course with the lions, sometimes it just seemed, well, rude not to keep them informed. He still did not believe they were any more than sophisticated machines, but Cady did and Keith. Hunk paused. He really did not know what Keith actually believed. The cap was one to keep his thoughts to himself, that one. He did not discourage Cady in her beliefs, and that was something to ponder.

Shaking his head, Hunk focused on the task at hand. Finishing the startup sequence, he happily noted it seemed to be functioning properly. Unlike some of the systems they had repaired, which did not work even though diagnostically the technicians could not find a problem. The yellow pilot had finally told them to leave Black to him. Grunson could handle flying Yellow when the doc gave them the clearance to fly again. It was now time to start the recovery and rebuilding process. The last of the ground troops had either been destroyed or surrendered in the last hour. The all-clear had sounded. Tomorrow would see the process of digging out the shelters. All shelters had reported to the castle. Keith would be proud to know his preparation had meant no one in the shelters had fallen to enemy fire.

The Lieutenant would turn his attention to repairing the lions to optimal working order. It would be a task which would consume weeks. With the battle over, the castle would reassign the repair crews to the rebuilding of towns. Winter came hard in some parts of Arus. Many of the people would continue to live the shelters. Some cities reported near total destruction of the buildings. It would take years to rebuild. The ruling council had already approved generalize rebuilding plans for the planet. Public buildings such as hospitals and schools had priority for manpower. The market districts and industrial districts had the next priority, then individual home, and finally government buildings. Of course, people were welcome to work on their own homes as they can. The towns had tried to preserve and hide the large construction equipment and had been somewhat successful. The areas of heaviest fighting had lost nearly everything, but the smaller towns and outlying areas had managed to save much. This would help the rebuilding effort.

Arus also expected a large influx of supplies from neighboring planets and the alliance. Pollux had pledged food stuffs and help in the form of trained personnel. Sven had finally reported with good news. The physical damage to Pollux was minimal. They had managed to keep the attacking force in space. Lotor had learned and not launched a major attack. The force between Pollux and Arus was to keep a blockade to prevent Pollux for launching a counter attack or pinching Lotor's armada between two hostile forces. The Drule prince's strategy hinged on a quickly overcoming the defenses of Arus. He knew that the alliance would come to help but banked on it taking longer than it did and in less resistance on the planet. Hunk knew without Keith's insistence on defense and protection of the people first, it would have happened as Lotor planned.

Hunk pushed all extraneous thoughts aside and concentrated at the task on hand. His complete absorption prevented from hearing Cady come up behind him.

"Uncle Hunk?"

With a yelp of surprise, Hunk scrambled to keep from dropping the portable analysis pad. "Cady! Make some noise, girl! You are as bad as your father for sneaking up on people!"

Giggling she climbed on his lap as he set the pad aside. Sighing she lay her head against his chest. "Your heart is beating really fast, Uncle Hunk! I scared you good!"

"You sure did, Cady-did-what," Hunk agreed as he reached to rub the back of his neck where the muscles felt tight. "So my girl. What brings you here? Does Nanny know you are here?"

He felt Cady's head nod against his chest. "Black wanted to talk to me."

Hunk paused and leaned sideways to look Cady in the eye. "How do you know that, Cady?"

"He asked me to come. When I was sitting with Daddy."

Hunk looked at her in bewilderment and repeated very slowly. "Black ask you to come. Here. When you were sitting with your Dad."

"Uh, huh."

"Ohhh-kay. How long have you been here with Black?" Hunk was feeling out of his depth and really wishing Sven or Keith were here. He was a mechanic! Just a mechanic.

Cady shrugged and swung her legs. "I dunno. Black said lots of things I do not quite understand. Can you help me?"

Hunk swallowed, glad she was tucked in his lap and not looking him in the face. "Of course sweetheart, give it to me." Cady's uncle was wishing harder for Sven. This was not his job!

The little girl did not answer right away, she seemed almost reluctant. Odd for her. She usually had no trouble talking to anyone. After a minute, Hunk finally prodded gently, "Did you want to tell me? Or the princess?"

"No, the princess would only cry. She loves Daddy very much and she would just cry and cry and that would be bad."

Hunk felt pole axed. _Cady_ saw how the princess felt? "What about your Daddy? Does he like the princess?"

He felt her nod. "He just does not know it yet. Maybe I should just tell him. I miss my Daddy, Hunk. He has not even opened his eyes once. I know, cause I asked Dr. Gorma. I asked the nurses, but they would not tell me. The doctor did though." She fell quiet again as the pilot's thoughts continued to race.

This girl was wise well beyond her years. She had a knack of seeing through to people. Well, truthfully so did Keith, but like so many people was blind to himself. Cady believed Keith loved the princess but did not know it? Could be, could be. It would be so right if. Hunk cut off the thought as Cady finally began to speak.

"Black says Daddy is scared. He says Daddy had ac-cept-ted what would happen and now is scared to come back. He says Daddy thinks he won't every be really better and doesn't want to be a burden. What's a burden Uncle Hunk?"

"A burden means several things. The first means to carry something very heavy. What your Daddy means is he thinks he will make everyone take care of him and he would not be able to take care of himself."

Cady sat quietly for a moment. "Well that is just silly. I would take care of him. Just like he takes care of me when I am sick." She turned toward Black's control panel. "Tell him I said so, Black. You tell him I will take care of him for ever and ever 'cause he is my Daddy. You tell him Black." She paused and listened for a moment. Then nodded and turned to look at Hunk. "Black says something else. He says Daddy is very tired and just wants to rest. He says he wants to let someone else carry the load. He says Daddy has nothing left to give. What does that mean, Uncle Hunk?"

Mentally, Hunk whistled. If Cady told the truth, and Hunk was starting to believe just what she said, then it would take a miracle to bring Keith back. "It means that your Daddy needs a really long vacation, sweetie. He has been working too hard and should stop working for a time," he prevaricated. Hunk felt out of depth on this one. He should talk with Coran, no better yet, with Dr. Gorma. The doctor often looked beyond the obvious. "Anything else sweetie."

Cady shook her head, "Just that Black says Daddy is still far away, but said he would not go any further for a while. I want Daddy to wake up, Uncle Hunk. He has not even stirred when I read him a story. He always listens to me read."

The pilot just gathered the little girl in his arms as she started to cry. He made those nonsense sounds one makes when trying to give comfort where none exists. Hunk rubbed Cady's back and let her hold onto him and cry. It nearly broke his heart. As she started to quiet, he became aware of a noise in the cabin. It sounded like, purring? Straining his ears, Hunk tried to pinpoint the source, but the low rumbling seem to emanate from every where. With a last loud sniff, Cady stilled in his arms. The noise dimmed until he could no longer hear it. Head shaking to clear it, Hunk reached into his pocket for the ever present handkerchief. He and the others had learned to carry one at all times when Cady was only a baby. They cleaned a variety of messes, wet or dry.

"There now Cady-girl. Let's go find Nanny before she worries. Then we can go have a nap if you want, or dinner?"

Cady shook her head at the dinner idea, but she clung to Hunk as he stood. He tucked one arm underneath her so she could lie on his shoulder as they walked. It had been a long time since he had carried her like this, and it surprised him to discover how long her legs had grown in the last few months.

Nanny took one look at Cady and bustled her off to a warm bath and bed. She just shooed Hunk away before he could tell her why Cady had been crying. "I know, Lieutenant, I know."

He watched his niece walk down the hallway without her usual sparkle. Swallowing hard, he straightened his shoulders and walked to sickbay. For now he would accept what Cady told him at face value. The rest he could evaluate later.

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"So that is what she told me, Doc. I did not know what to make of it, so thought to come and tell you. Do you make anything out of it?" Hunk sat in one of the chairs in Gorma's office, hands clasped between his knees.

"Well," said the doctor slowly, "that is interesting." He sat back with a thinking expression on his face. Several minutes pass, with each man lost in his own thoughts. Finally Dr. Gorma broke the silence, "Do you think it accurate, what Cady told you?"

Hunk nodded, "The concepts are beyond her age. I realize she has more practical knowledge than most girls her age, but Keith would never knowingly tell her about the burdens of command. He would never put that kind of pressure on her when he knows she could not understand." He shook his head, "No, I really think Black somehow is tied to Keith and Cady. From a purely mechanical standpoint, I cannot understand why some systems work and some do not. We could not fly Black now if we launched him with a slingshot. But if his condition is somehow tied to Keith's or if his trying to keep Keith here keeps him from paying attention to himself, well, the princess has always maintained the lions to be more than simple mechanical constructs. Cady has talked to Black since the first time Keith took her to him. It was not long after she came. Black was in for repairs and he took her to show her what he did." Suddenly Hunk stopped his recitation and clamped his lips together. "Sorry, Doc, just babbling there. So, what do we do?"

"I do not know, Lt. Garett, I really do not. Let me digest what you have told me. There are some people I can contact, see if they have any ideas. It may sound strange, but this in some ways this does not seem that unusual. The captain has fallen into a very deep coma." Pausing, "I cannot speculate, let me contact Obreck and see if they have any insights."

Hunk stood and held out his hand to Mikko. "Thanks, Dr. Gorma, I knew you would want to know."

Shaking hands, the men parted to their differing duties.

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	11. Tough decisions

Sighing off the transmission to Obreck, Mikko sat back in his chair. Abruptly he grabbed a data pad and started writing down his list, muttering to himself as he did so.

"Ok, Mikko, let's figure this out. First, the last two months before the invasion the captain spent more time out of bed than in it. Let's say he averaged four to five hours of sleep a night, on a good night. The exception being the times the princess or Cady coerced him into an actual night of sleep. Follow that by six days of intense battle with very few breaks of any duration. Three days of stims, three days of Agappon, one surgery which lasted over ten hours and at least five times he was resuscitated, three heart attacks in six hours post surgery, and a second surgery which only lasted about ninety minutes. So then he is under anesthesia for all that time. That brings us to day seven. Then some recovery time bringing us to day eight. Then I ordered the entire team to stand down for a standard twenty-four hours. Day nine, today. We are two days post surgery. Add into that almost no sleep for six days, injuries which should have killed him, mystical roots and crazy drugs. Add into the fever which has not yet abated, note to self testing should be done. Add lack of hydration, lack of nutrition. Add into the equation Agappon can cause depression or psychosis in some people. Ok then, how does it all add up?

Mikko sat back in his chair, the stencil tapping on the pad. Deciding to pull up the data from the lab, he looked at the report. The compound was had a natural tropane alkaloid base but someone, probably Haggar had modified it. It resembled the chemical signature of a plant called Belladonna from Earth. A similar plant grew on Orped called Dream Walker which differed slightly from the Earth compound. Dream Walker sent people into a dream or coma-like state to allow for dream states or to enhance meditation. Belladonna on the other hand in its natural form could kill an adult who ate one leaf. The roots in some variation held even deadlier poisons. Symptoms of Belladonna poisoning included depression, tachycardia (which explained the heart attacks), hallucinations, confusion, among a host of other physical issues. Dream Walker poisoning could induce spontaneous fever and a disconnection with the real world, leaving the user unaware of their state.

Reading further, he blinked at a most devious addition. The compound, combining the worst properties of Bella Donna and Dream Walker, attached itself to the smooth muscles lining the digestive tract and veins. It acted like a parasite, interrupting the flow of nutrients to the body while releasing the poisonous compound to the body and keeping it from recovering. The more calories they pumped into the commander, the more the parasite would grow. If they cut off the TPN, the captain would starve to death in a short amount of time as he had no reserves on which to draw. What little nutrition came through kept him alive.

Gorma sent word back to the lab, they had to find a way to counteract the poison without killing the captain in the process, and it did not look like they had much time. Mikko wanted nothing more than to fling himself headfirst into the lab and rush the technician along. It was not is forte, however, surgery and critical injuries claimed that slot. He let out a long breath and ran his fingers though his hair. Sending out several more messages, he asked for a conference of people to help him make some decisions about Keith Kogane.

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Allura sat with Cady on her lap as she read aloud from a book. The little girl had come with tears in her eyes, asking the princess to please come and sit with her daddy with her, because she did not want to be alone in the room with him. It had taken all of Allura's self-control not to break down crying at the pronouncement. In four years, Cady had never been afraid to sit with her Dad in the hospital before. When the princess had asked why, the little girl had replied her Daddy was too far away and could not hear her. She felt like he was not in the room.

Not needing any other explanation, the princess readily agreed. When they arrived, the nurse on duty smiled, but did not leave the room. Orders of a nurse in constant presence still stood. Keith looked nothing like himself. His muscles twitched in random patterns, his breathing shallow, but steady. Seeing him, Allura could understand why Cady did not want to be here without someone. It did not seem he had improved at all in the three days since help had arrived.

Pushing negative thoughts aside, she half listened to the little girl on her lap, but in reality prayed. _Goddess and God above, please listen to your humble servant. I ask not for myself, but for the man laying here in front of me. He has given more to Arus than any one person should be called upon to do. With no word of complaint, with no hesitation, and with no doubt, time and again he has put himself between the planet and the forces which would stop it. He humbly accepts the accolades of the people and then puts the medals in a drawer without any care for them. He does not look back, but forward to the next threat, the next mission. _

_His daughter, my daughter of the heart in many ways although I cannot say those words aloud, does not falter in her belief in her father. She simply knows he will always return, always have the magic kiss to make any hurt disappear, and tell the best stories. His arms keep her safe from harm, and the love he dotes on her reflects back to everyone who knows her. 'Those hooligans' as Nanny calls them, managed to raise a wonderful child with imagination, honor, and laughter. How Nanny's opinion of them changed somewhat when Cady arrived and she saw how they doted on her. Irreverent, messy, with disregard for protocol and rules, with this tiny little girl they became something more. Keith did that for all of them. He makes everyone around him want to be something more than they are. He does not use grand speeches, nor false promises or expectations. Just by living by his code of honor and ethics, people look to him for guidance and hope. _

_Selfishly, I want him back. I would trade much to have him look at me with that eyebrow raised when I have done something to surprise him, or when he is particularly unimpressed with something I have said. He has shown me courtesy, care, and something more I cannot name. He shared his daughter, his family with me when he saw how much I needed that. He taught me pride in my accomplishments and how to protect my people._

_I love him. With every fiber of my being. I love him and like a cliché always thought to tell him, the next hour, the next day, the next week. He stands larger than life sometimes as though death cannot hold him. I would gladly trade my life for his, but know I cannot. My people need me, and he would never forgive me my conceit in believing my life was expendable for his. I can hear him lecturing me that after all the time and effort he spent in training me, I would repay him thus? No, I cannot trade my life for his. _

_I beg for his life. I will not demean You my Goddess and my God above by attempting to bargain. Many things I could say and will not. You know my heart and his. Moreover you know my people's heart. To them, Keith has embodied every principle which Arus held dear before the first of Zarkon's attacks. He never gives up and never quits, and by example has taught my people to rise from the ashes like the fire bird to rebuild and begin again. They have heard the stories of him returning to fight wounded and in pain. He does not accept excuses for failure. I have watched him cut down someone with a few words who makes excuses for their failure and raise up another who tried and could not succeed. How wondrous it is to watch him turn failure into success with a few words. He has done it with me._

_I would not be the leader today without him. Leave aside the fact I would have been Lotor's bride or slave, he taught me how to lead. Not just command but to truly lead people without needing false flattery or begging. He taught me leaders to not ask for command, they simply assume you will follow their orders. There is no question of authority, because you did not ask for it, nor was it granted to you, you assumed the mantle of leadership._

_I love him. _I_ need him for me. Not as princess, but as me. He is my best friend. He is the lover of which I dream. He is my partner and my perfect fit. Please comfort him in his distress, and grant him healing. Let the boundless love I, his daughter, friends, and people of Arus sustain him in the struggle to heal, and give him something to which he can cling in despair. I humbly ask this in your grace, Goddess and God above._

Allura became aware of a single tear coursing down her cheek. She turned her head slightly to kiss Cady on the head. She looked up at Allura and gave a wavering smile. Then turned back to her fairy tale book. Both missed the movement from the bed. For a moment, it looked as though the captain had tried to reach for them. His fingers had momentarily opened and pointed to the pair. It had lasted only a few seconds, and then fallen back to the bed. Perhaps it had only been another muscle contraction.

The two stayed in Keith's room for another twenty minutes. Then Nanny called looking for Cady to have dinner, and reminded Allura of the meeting with Dr. Gorma in thirty minutes. She would bring dinner to the meeting. In the meantime, the princess' presence was required in her office. She gave Cady a last hug and smiled inwardly at how quickly both of them jumped to do what Nanny 'requested.' Magda had them both well-trained!

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Doctor Gorma had asked to delay the meeting he had called for several hours. He needed some information which would not come available until then. All parties agreed and returned to their separate tasks. The princess returned to her desk to mediate the disputes starting to arise as to allocation of resources. She had worked closely with Romelle to design a plan which would allow for the most efficient dispersal of resources and a system for tackling complaints and problems. Allura would see only the ones members lower on the rung could not solve. At the local level, a temporary position of Resource Coordinator would follow the plan each individual town had developed for recovery. Above Resource Coordinator, a District Supervisor, then an Area Overseer all reported to the palace and one of five different Managers. Only when the Managers could not solve an issue, would the princess become involved. Similar rungs for differing areas followed the same example. This would allow the princess to stay involved, but not become overwhelmed by the massive amount of information coming toward her.

Suddenly, the princess paused as a thought came into her mind. In all of the recovery plans, no where did Keith's name appear. The other pilots had assignments from repair to teaching, but not the Black pilot and leader of Voltron. "Goddess and God above!" she exclaimed. Tears started flowing down her face as she realized that Keith had not expected to survive the attack against Arus, and that he had planned for that eventuality. Suddenly all his preparation made sense. Once again, he had put everyone on the planet before himself. It explained his detailed preparation of legal documents to keep Cady on Arus should something happen to him. It explained, everything.

The princess wanted nothing more than to push everything aside and sit beside Keith until he gave some sign of still living in more than name. To see that something of him wanted to come back. The impulse lasted only moments before she straightened in her chair. The captain had pushed himself to the brink, had prepared everything he could think of to make Arus survive. She would not disgrace herself or Keith's belief in her by breaking down now. She would attend to her business and she would see Arus prosper. Nothing would stop her now.

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Several hours later, Hunk banged his head, startled as his timer sounded, reminding him of the meeting with the doctor. He could only imagine what the news would be. Carefully he finished the last screw, then scooted out from under Black control panel wiping his hand on a rag. Packing his tools quickly, he asked the communications officer to send a reminder to Lance and Pidge. The former had spent the day with one of the surviving commanders from the Arusian air force to take stock of supplies and manpower available in the recovery effort. With so much confusion, it took time to sort through all the reports and separate the chaff from the grist, as his dad used to say. Pidge, not surprisingly, had spent the day repairing vital computer systems and trying to bring all castle systems back on-line. With an absent pat on the control board, he headed to the central computer system to drag Pidge out of it and remind him of the meeting.

Upon arriving at the room, he heard Pidge swearing a blue streak as he sat in front of a panel which looked like a plate of spaghetti someone had thrown on the floor and walls. He walked heavily so as not to startle the green pilot.

"Transmission wire looks fried, it will need complete replacement, like that will just turn up in the stores." More swearing followed cursing the designers of the system as unmitigated morons whose parents should have been sterilized.

Finally, Hunk cleared his throat, working to keep the amusement off of his face. The princess though of Pidge as her slightly younger brother, and viewed him through rose colored glasses. The young pilot, no dummy, did nothing to dispel the vision. He toed the line whenever Allura could see, but apart from that, he caused no end of trouble.

Pidge looked up at the interruption, irritation on his face, fading as he saw Hunk standing there, "Oh, it's you. Time then?"

Hunk nodded and nearly laughed as his friend simply shoved the mess of wires back into the wall and closed the panel. Pidge noticed the look, "Fried, anyway. I will have to rebuild the gods-be-damned system from scratch. At least _I_ will do it right!"

The pair started walking toward the exit and Hunk paused to really look at his friend. Several years earlier, his eyes had finally stabilized enough to have corrective implants, repairing the genetic defect which had kept him in glasses for so long. Amazing that science had still not found a way to replace glasses for some people. Once science had unlocked the gene which caused the eyes to require correction, it had become standard to design a fix for it used in-utero. A very few repairs faltered for unknown reasons. Until the eyes finally stabilized in the late teens, old-fashioned correction was still used.

As soon as he could, Pidge had elected to have the surgery, although it had been delayed with the assignment to Arus. Sven had volunteered to take Pidge's place for the time it would take him to have the surgery done. Arus did not have the facilities to do the work, but planet Ebb did. After returning, he had looked like a young man, instead of a boy. The girls around the castle noticed as well. With guidance from Lance and Keith he had become something of a Casanova, but with better morals.

As with most of planet Balto, growth came later in the life cycle than in most humans. As he reached his 20th Earth year, his long-awaited growth spurt arrived. Within the year he had grown to a respectable 5'11". Then the girls really started noticing him. With dark brown eyes, and a sharp mind, with Lance's smoothness with women, and Keith's sense of honor Pidge never lacked in dates. Of course, the princess did not know how much he dated, and Pidge preferred it that way. He had also started going by his real name of Darrell, as Pidge just did not fit anymore. The team still used his nickname, but much in the way family does, with the exception of Keith. Pidge had told him the first time Keith had heard someone refer to him as Darrell, he had quietly asked if that was his preference. When the green pilot had told him that his nickname did not seem to fit anymore, Keith had simply nodded. The name Pidge had never crossed his lips again. Just like the captain.

Which turned Hunk's thoughts back to the task at hand. Why did the doc want to meet with the team, Coran, Nanny, and the princess. He did not think it would be good news. Only one way to find out.

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The three pilots, princess, Coran, and Magda, gathered in one of the lounges near the hospital. Small conversations died as Mikko entered last, and shut the door. He had requested Cady not be present. She did not have the intellectual or emotional capacity to deal with the situation. As the doctor sat down and poured himself a cup of tea Nanny had brought, his gaze lit on the princess. He had debated leaving her out of the discussion, but in the end felt she had as much right to a say as the rest of the Voltron force. Sighing, Mikko closed his eyes for a moment to sent a fleeting prayer to the Goddess and God above for strength and guidance. The soft sound sounded loud in the quietness of the room.

"I imagine you all know or have a guess as to why you are here. In the last few days, the captain's condition has not improved. In some ways it has worsened. The analysis on the substance which coated the spines of the last RoBeast showed it to be a fusion of qualities of Earth's belladonna plant and Orped's Dream Walker plant. Without going into technical details, the effects of the compound are quite insidious. The effects range from fever, to tachycardia, which explains why the captain required a pace maker. In addition to physical manifestations, it also affects the mind. Once the poison entered the body, it started to attach to smooth muscle, which is why spindling his blood did not clear it. The parasitical part of the poison had already attached inside the veins. It continued to pump poison into the blood stream. We have started to spindle the captain's blood again in order to remove as much of the poison as possible and to try and stabilize his condition."

Mikko paused and looked around the table seeing expressions of shock, fear, and confusion. "The worst part of the parasite is that it is absorbing most of the calories we pump into the captain. For now, he remains stable, but as the parasite grows it absorbs more of the nutrients. Normally we would have some time to try and find an anti-dote, but the captain has no reserves left from which to draw. The Agappon and prolonged battle took care of that. If I did not know better, I would think Haggar knew what the captain would do, and deliberately designed a RoBeast and poison to target him. In any of the other team members, the poisoning would not have compromised the body's systems so quickly."

"Compounding everything is the sheer amount of physical damage the Captain Kogane took during the six days of fighting. From the reports I have read, Lotor kept gunning for the captain. You all know the damage, so I am not going to repeat it. So, this brings me to the reason you are gathered here." Once again, Mikko paused, fiddling with the data pad in front of him. There would be no easy phrasing, no pandering to the group.

Lance, as usual, broke the silence. "Doc, just spit it out. We all have seen Keith. Just tell us and do not leave us sitting here in suspense."

The doctor nodded, and then looked at the group, but focused on the princess. Her word would carry the most weight with the group. It was a known secret how she felt about the captain. No one, with the exception of Lance, would tease her about her not-so-secret feelings, but no one doubted she loved the Black's pilot. "Testing has found the organism can survive in a very narrow band of acidity. Lower or raise the pH of the environment too much and it dies." He held up a hand as several voices tried to ask a question at the same time. "Hold up, let me finish. We can purposefully cause either acidosis or alkalosis in the captain. The former would decrease the pH of the captain to a more acidic level. The latter the opposite. It would increase the pH, increasing the basic level. The reason we have not instituted either treatment is that both have dangers and we need someone with authority to decide whether or not to pursue the treatment. Captain Kogane appointed Magda and Coran as his arbiters, should he be unable to make a medical decision for himself. I felt that the other Voltron pilots should have a say in the decision."

Taking a deep breath, he continued. "Both treatments are not without risk. In the case of acidosis, we would increase his fluids and add in something to promote the removal of sodium bicarbonate from the body. We would also put him in a tent and increase his carbon dioxide levels. The potential complications include heart attack, tissue death due to low blood pressure and kidney failure. I am particularly worried about the stress to his heart. At this point, his heart cannot take too much more stressing."

"One alternative is to induce a state of alkalosis or decreasing the pH of his body. We would do just the opposite by increasing the captain's breathing rate to decrease the amount of carbon dioxide in the blood, and increasing the concentration of bicarbonate in his blood. We would also put him in a chamber to simulate a high altitude. The potential complications include arrhythmias of the heart, coma and hypokalemia, the lack of potassium in the blood which can lead to other conditions. I am not as concerned with the latter two symptoms as he is already in a coma, and we would keep a close eye on his potassium levels.

"We could also take a wait and see approach. Try and build some strength into the captain and give his heart a chance to rest. My only concern with this approach in the encroachment of the parasite. The captain needs calories to devote to healing, and the parasite is taking the majority of them.

"There is a fourth approach. We can simply cut off all nourishment to the captain. My technician tells me in his lab tests, the parasite did not survive long without a constant nutrition stream. Essentially, starve the parasite before the captain does. Again, the complications include stressing the heart, and increased muscle atrophy as his body increases its muscle consumption rate to keep going. The other danger is the parasite would actually feed off muscle tissue as well, making it a lose-lose situation for the captain. If we cut of nutrition and the parasite does feed off the muscle stores, the chance of successfully inducing a state of either acidosis or alkalosis become null.

"Last we discussed trying to irradiate the parasite. It had some effect in the lab, but this is not a very viable option, again due to the poor condition of the captain."

Mikko closed his eyes and sat back. "That is all I can tell you."

The table remained quiet, each person thinking their own thoughts. Several minutes passed before anyone said a word. Surprisingly, it came from Hunk, "For what it is worth, the captain has never given up on any of us, so I do not think we should give up on him. We must do something. It seems to me the best option is one of the first two you discussed, the one which could induce coma. It seemed the most return for the least risk. We have lived for four years in a constant state of risk. In comparison to that, this seems like nothing."

The doctor paused to really look at the yellow lion pilot. Usually he remained quiet and did not speak much. Lt. Garrett did not have much confidence in himself, but when he spoke, people listened. He always thought the answers through and had an eerie ability to make the correct conclusions without having all the pieces in front of him. Gorma likened it to being able to determine the shape of something by having only a partial outline. An incredible talent, if somewhat unexplainable.

"I agree with Hunk," added Lt. Stoker. Uncharacteristically, he added nothing more.

Lance simply nodded, a suspicious moisture around his eyes. "Can you give us any odds, Doc?"

"Not any you would care to hear."

Finally Allura spoke, "Is there anyway to lessen the possibility of complications to any of the treatments?"

"No," Dr. Gorma said shortly. "Not without extensive testing we have no time to do. The computer models can only predict so much."

A tear fell down her cheek, unheeded. "I concur with Hunk as well."

Magda and Coran nodded their agreement. "Do it, Mikko."

The doctor nodded and stood. "We will start immediately, then. It will take several hours before we see any results and I will send a page as needed." With nothing further, the doctor left the room.

There was nothing further to say. Coran and Magda left together. Then Hunk and Darrell leaving Lance and Allura. Slow tears leaked unchecked down her cheeks. It seemed too much effort to wipe them away. Lance had no words of comfort for her. He just sat slumped, head against the back of the chair in silence, as tears leaked from his closed eyes.

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	12. Waiting stinks

AUTHOR REQUEST: It would be much appreciated for any reviews. Plus tell your friends to read this!  --KM

Keith's room had become a hub of activity. A technician had brought one of the small chambers used in training pilots capable of pressurizing to high altitudes. One of the nurses had volunteered to test the monitors within the chamber to ensure it did not interfere with transmission. A second nurse attached the various diodes and monitoring pads the captain required; heart rate, respiratory rate, a band which would test the increasing pH within the veins, a carbon dioxide monitor, a brain wave monitor, and several more. The oxygen tubes set to a lower percentage would allow an increase in carbon dioxide within the body and a higher concentration of the same would flood the chamber. Doctor Gorma would stay on hand to watch for carbon dioxide poisoning or problems with his heart. Mikko also ordered the temporary suspension of TPN solution to give the organism less upon which to draw. The IV would instead contain an infusion of sodium bicarbonate to increase the alkalinity of the captain's body suspended in saline to keep the captain hydrated.

Mikko had called in favors from Galaxy Garrison to allow his people the freedom to work on the captain. They had given everything he requested with no questions and without the usual delay. Earth was one among a hoard of planets who looked up to the captain. No one wanted to lose such a valuable resource.

Finally, testing complete, the nurse was brought back to normal elevation and released from the chamber. All of the monitors functioned within normal parameters. The time would never be better. With great care, the crew moved the captain to the chamber. He did not stir during the entire time. Drawing a breath, the doctor ordered the elevation to start increasing as well as the concentration of carbon dioxide. Watching through the observation ports, Mikko watched at the captain's respiratory rate rose and sweat began beading his forehead.

Now it would take time. They would all feel useless standing around watching the captain but no one would leave the room. Gorma and the nurses would be on hand in case anything untoward happened. _Goddess and God above_ prayed Mikko,_ he has been through enough, please do not let him suffer any more. We have reached the end of human intervention. If this treatment does not work, I cannot imagine any thing further which we humans could do. Cradle him in your healing grace and bless him with the life he should lead._

As Gorma looked around the room, he observed he was not the only one to be offering prayer on the captain's status. One of the nurses approached him, "Dr. Gorma," she began, "The captain's condition has begun to spread to the rest of the people. If prayer can help him now, he has not only Arus, but Pollux, Earth, and a host of other planets praying for him. Have faith, doctor. The people have faith in him and the Goddess and God above. Believe in them and believe in him."

Mikko nodded, but did not stop his eyes from flicking from monitor to monitor watching every aspect he could. The waiting had commenced.

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Hunk had returned to work on Black. He found himself talking aloud and telling Black of the plan of attack. Strangely enough, he could almost feel the reassurance Black sent his way. The lion did not doubt in the captain's recovery. Shaking his head at his own fancy, Hunk, none-the-less, took a sense of reassurance to his work. Again, he started talking to himself as he worked on Black's systems. After working constantly on Black for the day, it looked as though, if the lion cooperated, he would be ready to fly on the morrow. Of course, if the lion had taken any of Keith's stubbornness, than all bets were off.

That is how Allura found the yellow pilot. Words which he would not utter in her presence blistered the air as sparks sprayed from where the Lieutenant worked. She smiled and leaned against the doorway as she watched. He alternately swore and cajoled the system which he was trying to repair. It certainly increased her vocabulary listening to him. She grinned, knowing when he discovered her, his choice of wording would take a 180° turn. In the meanwhile, well, she could wait a bit.

As she stood, her thoughts wandered to the changes she saw in Hunk from when he first arrived. While no one doubted his intelligence or his facility with _anything_ mechanical, his propensity to speak before thinking had often landed him in trouble and as the butt of jokes among the crew. He took it good-naturedly as he did everything else. Allura had learned he suffered from extreme shyness. When the team needed to make an appearance, he often availed himself of an anti-anxiety medication. She had not learned _that_ until a town had once thrown an impromptu party for the team. He had made the excuse of needing to patrol, and nearly run for his lion. What had shocked the princess? Keith had merely nodded at Hunk when he requested to make a patrol. It had taken six months and a bottle of brandy before Hunk had spilled the story to her. After that, she had kept a small supply of the medicine from Dr. Gorma on hand so he would not have to experience another problem.

He had changed physically since coming to Arus. The first year, everyone had been on short rations. Hunk had never once complained. Later she had learned that the other four members of the team had banded together to give him some of their rations. During that first year, the pilot had dropped any extra weight. He had maintained the weight loss to be deliberate. Much later, she learned he had always been hungry and the loss was a result of never having quite enough to eat. Never did a complaint cross his lips.

Hunk had never returned to his former girth. He would never be lean like Keith or Lance, but he stood solid. Children flocked to him, knowing he stood like a tree and yet his hands could hold a chick so gently it would sleep. Allura wiped a tear from her eye. He was the kindest, gentlest man she had ever known and one of the fiercest warriors when needed. The orange headband and wild hair had given way to something more tamed, although the headband still made an appearance whenever he worked on engines.

In another month's time, he would marry Saria Lannis. Before the current wave of attacks, she had a small shop in town where she sold her hand thrown pottery. The two had met when he wandered into her shop looking for an apology present for Nanny. The two had started talking, and two weeks before word came about Lotor, they had agreed to marry. Garrison had approved his request for permanent placement on Arus. In addition, they had granted him a new rank of 1st Lieutenant with the comment it had been earned several times over. In fact, they had granted new ranks to Keith, Lance, and Pidge as well. Over due, and over earned. She doubted any of them really cared about the ranks. Pidge also received the rank of 1st Lieutenant, Lance to Captain, and Keith promoted two grades to Lt. Colonel on recommendation from the ruling body of Arus. Lance could not help but give Keith a bad time, which Keith gave back in spades by happily turning over some 'Captain' duties to the perpetually responsibility evading Lance. It made for a fun situation to watch.

Allura drew herself out of her musings and gently cleared her throat. A rather rude comment from under board had her smiling. "Whenever you finish, Hunk."

A muffled sound and a rather loud bang answered her. A few minutes later, with no further episodes of colorful language, Hunk emerged from under the control panel. "What can I do you for, Princess?" He picked up a rag and started cleaning off one of his tools.

"I could not concentrate on all the reports on my desk, did not feel like listening to any more bickering today, and just wanted to see how Black was doing," she said all in a rush while looking at her fingernails.

"Ahh," said Hunk, in a tone of understanding and compassion. He understood. She had no tears left to shed, could not stop worrying, and other people's sympathy grated on raw nerves. He knew the feeling. "Wrong question to ask, Allura. You showed up just when I need someone with small hands to solder some connections for me. If you look in the box over there, you will find all the ones which need cleaning and repair. Hop to it!"

She gave him a watery smile and did as he bade. Although not hard work, it took concentration and allowed her to stop thinking for a while. As she sat cross legged on the floor and pulled out one of the boards, Hunk tucked himself back under the control board. Neither spoke and attended to their jobs."

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Lance looked at the desk in frustration. Each time he finished one report, three more which needed his attention pinged him. How did Keith take care of all this crap? _I swear, when that numbskull wakes up, I am going to knock him out again for leaving me with this huge stinking pile of shit. _The newly promoted Captain wanted nothing more than to throw his recorder and the data pad out the window. _Damn pinging. Now I am going to be hearing it in my sleep._ _Screw it, I am so_ not_ doing any more of these._

With that, he flipped the pad into a drawer and strode out of Keith's office to head to the kitchens. He was pretty sure he could cajole some extra desert out of the kitchen staff, just a few pretty words, and some downtrodden looks and they would be putty in his hands. If he was really lucky, he would convince Katja to join him in the rec room later for a movie. Anything really to keep his mind off, _Nope, not even thinking it. No siree not this sky junkie_.

Lance wanted nothing more than to jump into Red and just race around the planet several times, letting his mind go numb and just flying. Damn Gorma anyway for grounding them until he decided otherwise. He had slept two nights in a row. Well, he had slept somewhat. Amazing what happened when life and death came to town. Katja had proven herself very flexible. What a great tension reliever she was.

Allowing his mind to dwell on the night with Katja, Lance wondered if he could convince her to take a break and perhaps make a special delivery to his room. . .

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Pidge had returned to the central computer system and proceeded to pull out the mess of wires and data cables he had been working on when Hunk had come for him. He contemplated the mess and nodding to himself, walked over to the panel and severed the connections. Most of the wires and cables needed replacement. Absently he sent a message to supply on one of the Garrison ships what he needed for replacement. Then he walked over to a small desk with old fashioned drafting equipment. Darrell found he worked better designing systems on paper. Considered a genius with computers and communication systems it would make more sense for him to use a drafting program. Just one of his little idiosyncrasies.

Besides, drafting took all his attention. He would not have to think about. . .anything else. Nothing beyond the paper and pen and designing an improved system for the castle. Protection and defense. Something efficient, elegant, and with minimal equipment. He could do that.

The green pilot focused on the paper, completely ignoring the tear leaking out of his eye.

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Coran and Magda went their separate ways after leaving the conference room. Coran returned to command central while Magda went to continue supervising the cleaning and repair of the castle proper. Masons had started arriving to evaluate the walls, determining what walls needed shoring up before removing of rubble, and what stood solid. The hospital had first priority, followed by the kitchens. The crews had orders to take care of any structural damage, then castle control, then areas starting with most damaged. Areas of only cosmetic damage would wait, in some cases months, for repair. The princess wanted only a few workers remaining in the castle to take care of superficial issues once the structure stood firm. The town would need every hand possible to rebuild.

Magda went to the captain's quarters. She had requested Cady to stay with the rest of the children for the time being. The children had all received tasks to help put the castle back together. Those in their early teens supervised the small children. Older children assisted with cleaning, cooking, and other tasks around the castle. Today, Magda had asked Cady and her year mates to start picking debris out of the vegetable and fruit gardens. The children would load wheelbarrows with whatever debris they could lift. Several soldiers cleared only for light duty would help them empty the wheelbarrows in designated areas. Magda wanted to assess the damage to the crops and see what they could rescue.

As she approached the Captain's quarters, it pleased her to see the maids had managed to clean most of the dust and debris from the floor. The rooms in this area had taken little damage, situated as they were in the interior of the castle. Most of the damage came from bits of mortar and wall falling due to the castle vibrating as missiles impacted. Pictures fell from the walls, frames cracking, paintings chipped and scratched. Shelves lay among the ruins of the decorative pieces which had adorned them. The masons had quickly cleared this area as stable.

Taking a breath, she entered the access code to the Kogane's quarters. Cady needed some clean clothing and a few of her things. She would stay with the crèche, until her father received clearance to return to their rooms. As she entered, Magda stopped in surprise. Unlike the rest of the castle, which had received only a cursory cleaning, these rooms sparkled. Someone had already remounted the shelving and returned books to their places. The pictures Cady had drawn which hung on the walls showed carefully applied tape to the tears and rips. The bedrooms and bathing area showed the same care. Clean linens covered the beds, fresh towels on warming racks. The rooms still smelled of paint and plaster.

Dashing a tear out of her eye, the woman quickly gathered what she needed from Cady's room. She knew the people who had worked on these rooms had done it after they had finished with their shifts around the castle. They had sacrificed rest and sleep to care for the man who risked everything for them. He had chosen the safety of the people over his own. He had to have known the risks and the odds he would also leave his beloved daughter behind. Magda straightened, a glint in her eyes. The Captain had chosen Arus, so now Arus would choose the Captain, and she knew just how they would do that. Marching out of the room determinedly, she allowed the doors to close behind her and went to find Coran. They had a mission and would not fail to see it through.


	13. Author Notes: Explaning the medicine

Excuse the interruption of the story

Excuse the interruption of the story. This author wishes to expound on some of the "medical" issues in the previous sections (and which will be pertinent in future sections.)

Belladonna does react just as I have indicated, however the parasitical issues are completely my own as well as the Dream Walker plant.

Smooth muscle runs throughout the body. Essentially this is the muscles you have no control over, the involuntary ones. They are concentrated through out the veins, arteries, and the digestive tract from the trachea downward. Essentially, once you swallow, smooth muscle takes over to move the food through the stomach, intestines, to the end.

The effects of acidosis and alkalosis are exactly as I described them. A few other complications can arise, but I did not want to overwhelm people with medical jargon or irrelevant facts.

A few other tidbits: a person can lose 40 of their blood volume and still survive with immediate transfusions. Athletes and those in top physical form can lose a bit more and still survive. Keith could lose that much blood and still function with the help of adrenaline.

Agappon, I have learned after the fact (Thanks Dr. Jon!), could have some basis in fact. Not completely, but there are combinations of substances which could produce most of the effects. Doctors today can stop the digestion process, lower heart rate, and increase alertness. Not necessarily simultaneously, but possible.

In medieval times, arrows were often left in wounds until the healer could attend to them. Leaving them in place staunched the bleeding, until the arrow could be removed and the wounds cauterized. Yes, without anesthesia.

In the case of the weight loss, a person is considered anorexic when their weight hits 85 of what is considered normal. Keith is a 6' male, well-muscled and in good shape. His healthy weight is around 180 pounds give or take 10. That means his anorexic weight is around 150 pounds /- 5 pounds. That can be taken even further. Starvation and malnutrition victims can drop below 100 pounds, although they look like skeletons with skin. At the risk of sounding insensitive, think how the people from Schindler's list looked.

In terms of gaining weight (or losing if you wish). To debunk the myth, a pound of muscle is not more than a pound of fat, simply denser. One pound is one pound. Each pound of body weight is approximately 3500 calories (depending on the person this varies, but this is a nice average). Does this mean if you eat an extra 3500 calories daily, you will gain a pound a day. Depends on the person, the short answer is (like everything else in life). If you add an extra 500 calories a day, or simply reduce your burning of calories by 500 calories then in a week you will gain one pound. Without going into so much detail your head spins, whether this turns to fat or to muscle depends on what your activities are and what you are eating. Candy bars and couch potato? Fat. Fruit, veggies, and protein with exercise? Muscle. If you need more information, try Wikipedia.

As most of you know, most people will live about 40 days without food but only a week without water. Strangely enough a week of no sleep can also lead to death.

Intestinal parasites, in later stages, act as described. Attaching to the veins and arteries is my own imagination.

Spindling blood is much like dialysis. Sometimes it is done with the purpose of warming or cooling the blood to increase body temperature in case of hypothermia, or to reduce it in the case of high fevers. I am not totally familiar with the process, just hijacked enough for my own purposes.

Poisons do accumulate in the muscles and other body tissues. Once the initial amount is removed, the body then releases it from the muscles. The best example is lead poisoning and why it is so dangerous.

The truth of the matter is this kind of thing fascinates me, so I spend too much time researching to make things slightly more realistic. The idea someone can receive enough internal damage to require surgery and then be up and moving like normal makes me snort. Suspension of disbelief only goes so far.

Oh, sidebar note: the advancement of correcting problems with a baby while in-utero continues to grow apace. I believe within a century, many of the genetic issues children have will be corrected with an engineered RNA virus. Yes, I really do like this kind of thing.

Now that you have been inundated with too much info, I humbly ask for your feedback!

Thanks,

--KM


	14. Treatment

Author notes:

Thank you to jadesabre75 for reading the beta version for me.

Trek, thanks for working out the chemistry with me on the parasite, and helping me catch the error with regards to the CO2.

Many thanks to diehard and bearysweet for taking the time to e-mail me with encouragement.

A thank you to Feli3 for the reviews and encouragement. And to answer the question: No Lotor will not make a direct appearance in this one.

I cannot find the words to express my appreciation for the people who have taken the time to let me know they are enjoying this piece. Those reviews mean the world to me. It also made my day when the count of reads on the story passed into four digits. For a time, I actually had more hits than my husband did with his astrophotography. For all those who have read this (some more than once), my most heartfelt appreciation and thanks.

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"Ok, people. Extra gentle here. On the count of three; one, two, three." On three the staff carefully lifted and transferred the Captain back to a regular bed. They had kept him the pressure chamber for nearly ten hours. In the beginning, it did not seem the treatment would work. After three hours, one of the monitors had reported a slight change. White blood cell count started to increase. Within an hour, poison concentrations decreased slightly.

Over the next six hours, Gorma struggled to maintain the balance between keeping the captain's blood pH high enough to kill the parasite without triggering renal failure, another heart attack or inducing hypoxia (oxygen poisoning).

As the ninth hour passed, the levels of carbon dioxide started decreasing rapidly within the captain and kidney function began declining. The pace maker kept his heart rhythm normal, but his body would not tolerate any further treatment. Ordering the chamber reduced to normal oxygen levels and brought back to a normal pressure, Gorma felt deflated. The treatment had started to work; scans showed sections of the parasite breaking off from the filament network and white blood cells attacking those sections. If only they could keep the captain in the chamber longer.

Shaking his head, Gorma took a deep breath and realigned his thoughts. Now was not the time for negative thinking. This proved they had the right treatment, it would just take more time than anticipated and more rounds in the chamber. It would give the captain's body a chance to rest for a few hours, absorb some nutrients, and the staff to rest before the next round. Mikko had already decided he would let the carbon dioxide levels return to normal, give the captain a renal function booster, and run the spindle again to remove the detached parasitical filaments. He suspected they could easily reattach to the smooth muscle and wanted to take no chances.

The nurses quickly attached the spindle. Behind the filter, black string-like structures quickly gathered. It would take two hours and three filters before the blood ran clear. The spindle ran another twenty minutes before Gorma ordered it disconnected.

Looking around the room, Mikko saw only determination and hope in the faces of his staff. They believed in their Captain. He nodded to himself, then addressed the room in words handed down for generations, "The lore masters have called for a vote."

At his words the room stilled for a moment, and then every face turned toward Mikko as he continued, "The builders have declared the small receiving chamber safe, and the scanners placed therein. You will have a week. Please pass the word."

A spontaneous cheer rose within the room and a new wave of determination shone from every face. Within a day, every person within the castle had placed their vote. The call to vote from the lore masters spread throughout Arus. The off-worlders did not understand the sudden shift in attitudes of many of the people of Arus. Productivity increased, and a new joy suffused through much of the population. When asked why, the people merely replied, "The lore masters called for a vote." No amount of prodding or prying could elicit any more information. Even the children, most unusually, did not offer more information. It would take nearly a standard month for the vote to reach the most remote regions and then return to the lore masters. Although no one doubted the outcome, each waited eagerly for the results.

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After consulting with the nurses, Gorma decided to let Keith rest until the monitors detected an increase in filaments. In the lab, regrowth started within two hours of returning to normal oxygen and pressure levels. The time would allow a respite to both the staff and the captain. Even though he had not stirred nor given any indication of consciousness, the doctor believed the captain must have awareness of what happened on some level.

The staff quickly dispersed to find a meal, a nap, and a chance to check on loved ones. A single nurse remained behind to monitor the captain and call everyone back to restart treatment when the parasite reactivated.

Mikko called for a gathering of Coran, Magda, the Princess, and the other members of Keith's team for an update in the conference room. Calling for a meal, he retreated to his office to review charts, treatments plans, and patient updates. Long practice made short work of the meal, when it arrived. It took less time than he anticipated to update the paperwork which would give him time to make patient rounds before the meeting in the conference room.

After Garrison had arrived, only a few patients had trickled into the castle infirmary. With the exception of the captain's room, each space in the hospital held at least three patients; those with the most critical injuries who needed close supervision. With the flow of badly injured shifted to Garrison surgeons, Gorma and his staff scheduled follow-up surgeries and small physical therapy sessions.

With the withdrawal of Lotor's forces, the planet would move those patients who needed more medical attention than Arus could provide to Ebb, Earth, and several other planets willing and able to replace limbs, repair damaged organs, and heal brain injuries. It would take years to rebuild the medical community on Arus. Gorma remembered before the first of Zarkon's attacks, he worked as one of the top surgeons on the planet. He had loved teaching almost as much as the challenges of surgery. It would take the rest of Mikko's lifetime and beyond to recover.

Pausing, the doctor looked at his hands. No longer the hands of a young man, yet they had served him well. Shaking his head, Gorma pulled himself out of the introspection, and chuckled at himself. The lack of sleep made him positively maudlin. He had no time for brooding. People counted on him and he had patients to see and a meeting in an hour. Taking a data pad with him, he swallowed the last of his cold kava and strode down the hallway, the picture of confidence and hope.

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It took four hours for the parasite to recover, longer than the doctor had hoped. Kogane had over two solid hours to absorb some nutrients without anyone poking or prodding him. Mikko believed it could only help.

The staff in the room looked, if not rested, than at least refreshed for the break from their battle. Gorma believed the old cliché about it being easier to fight an enemy with a face. They could not look the at parasite, target it, and watch it explode. It did not make it less of a battle, just on a smaller scale. The doctor shook his head at his own folly, cliché, indeed.

Two orderlies carefully moved the pressure chamber back into the room. With great care, they then lifted the captain with two nurses and gently set him in the device. The nurses checked to ensure the various monitoring devices had not come loose. The chamber closed. With a soft whir, the machinery came to life slowly decreasing pressure and reducing the amount of carbon dioxide in the air mixture. Within ten minutes, the captain's breathing accelerated and sweat beaded on his forehead.

The waiting began again.

It took less time for the man's pH levels to rise. The parasite ceased producing toxins in less than an hour. Gorma smiled, they had the damn thing on the retreat.

They kept the captain in the chamber for six hours before his oxygen levels started climbing to dangerous levels. Following the same procedure, Gorma had the chamber brought back to normal levels, and the captain attached to a spindle and TPN. It took slightly longer for the parasite to recover, which gave everyone hope they would beat the thing. Over the course of the next day, the medical staff followed the same pattern.

Mikko worried about the captain. Each time the captain could stand less of the chamber, but it took longer for the parasite to recover. After the third treatment, they did not wait for the parasite to recover, but started a pattern of three hours in the chamber, two hours out of it. After the sixth round, Gorma reduced the duration in the chamber to two hours. In one quiet moment, the doctor shooed everyone out of the chamber saying they needed a respite, and to return in two hours and firmly closed the door behind them.

He then sat beside the young pilot, listening to the soft sounds heart monitor as it beat out a steady, slow tempo. During the last few hours, small spasms had begun in the captain's arms and back. Reluctantly, he had given a muscle relaxant to the pilot. He felt it too dangerous to allow the spasms. The doctor believed it would only take a few more treatments to eradicate the parasite completely. If the captain could handle it. Although the parasite infestation deceased, the captain seemed to fade more after each round of treatment.

Closing his eyes he let the quiet of the room and the familiar sounds relax him. As he settled into himself, Mikko became aware of a sound which did not quite fit with the normal ones he associated with a hospital room. Listening closely, he identified the familiar noises and dismissed them as he tried to identify the new one. The heart monitor beeped softly, the spindle machine hummed quietly with a wooshing noise as the blood flowed through the tubing, and soft music played an old lullaby. This left something which almost sounding like speech, but at a very low register without any identifiable words. Keeping his eyes closed, he tried to turn his head to orient on the sound. When he opened them, Gorma found himself looking directly at the box Lt. McClain had asked to install. Thoughtfully, he walked over to the box and put his ear near it. The sound defiantly originated from the box, but seemed no louder here than across the room. He looked back and forth between the patient and the box several times and then nodded to himself. Walking to the door, he called an orderly into the room. The two spent the next ten minutes rearranging equipment until the box sat on a small table directly behind the captain's bed where it did not interfere with any equipment. Dismissing the orderly, he checked the captain's vitals before returning to his vigil.

The team would return in a half an hour to return the captain to the pressure chamber. He intended to use the time to meditate and perhaps offer a prayer to the Goddess and God above. Taking a deep breath he let it out slowly and could have sworn he heard a whispered Thank You.

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They could no longer detect any trace of new poison secretions. Gorma intended to spindle the captains blood for several hours. The poisons which had leeched into muscle and organ would now start to move back into the blood stream as the body tried to expel it.

Once again, the pilot's room turned into a bee hive of activity. The pressure chamber was maneuvered out of the room, but kept nearby in case of a reemergence of the parasite. Gorma felt they had killed all of it, but it would take only a small amount surviving to start the process anew. It took very little time to start the spindle machine.

The captain's fever started to abate, lowering from where it had hovered at 104 degrees. His heart rate remained steady and thus far had neither convulsed nor had his blood pressure dropped to a dangerously low level. Deep in his mind, Gorma felt this could be the turning point. He buried the thought before it ever came to fruition.

His wounds looked as well as could be expected. The puncture in his left shoulder did not seem unduly affected. Testing the muscles of the left hand, the doctor was relieved to see the reflexes responding appropriately with healthy color. He smiled to himself and allowed some vanity in saving the use of the hand. _With a little physical therapy, he should have full use of his hand. Damn, I'm good._

In contrast, the captain looked like hell. The little good he had received from the TPNs had quickly disappeared. Reluctantly, Gorma had ordered a temporary feeding tube to be inserted down the commander's throat. He wanted some solid food in the man, in addition to the TPN. Captain Kogane needed nutrition in a rather large and concentrated dose. Soon, tubes sprouted from the captain giving him the look of a mechanical creature. A tube down his throat, and IV in each arm, and spindle machine in his side, monitor pads on his chest and head, and a blood testing device on his leg, which periodically pricked the captain for a drop of blood to analyze for pH, carbon dioxide concentration, and to watch for any danger signs of the parasite returning.

Once they had put a sufficient amount of food in the captain's stomach, the feeding tube was removed, but the spindle would stay for several more hours. Gorma left at that point, with orders to call him immediately if there was any change. He did not expect the captain to come out of the coma for several days. His body had just taken too much of a beating and frankly, needed rest without someone poking prodding, or pushing it to the limits of human tolerances. Mikko arrived at his office, and sat in the chair with his feet up for a few minutes. Looking at his watch, he set an alarm to wake him, then reclined to let himself have a rejuvenating sleep. The tension had caught up to him, and he no longer had youth on his side. With no room for error, the doctor did not want fatigue to impede his though processes. It took only moments before he slept.

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The sounding of a loud buzzing startled Mikko into consciousness. From long practice he woke quickly, deactivated the alarm and stretched slightly. Poking his head out of the office, he flagged down a page to order a meal and then went to shower and dress in fresh clothes. He forced himself to eat and go through the reports before going to visit Captain Kogane. He stopped long enough to check with the duty nurse and then nearly running to the captain's room. As he walked in the room, the nurse on duty looked up with a smile. "Temperature normal, doctor."

"Excellent. Let me take a look at these labs. No further traces of toxin in the system. Analysis shows no additional toxin in muscle tissue." He paused to pick up a scanner. "No residual showing in bone marrow or hidden in soft tissue. Ok, Nurse Cruper, we are going to disengage our patient from the spindle."

The two worked quickly but carefully. First they shut off the intake, activating the block and let the remainder of the blood flow back into the vein. Then they removed the tubes and applied a clear sealer to the tube sites. The captain's color looked better than it had in days, the sickly yellow hue had faded. Although he did not look healthy, with the poisons removed he no longer looked as though he should be a week in the grave.

Gorma removed the unit from his leg and again placed a clear sealant on the puncture site. They also removed the second IV, leaving only the TPN solution attached. Without so many tubes and devices attached, it gave both the doctor and nurse an surge of relief. In their business, less attachments meant a healthier patient.

Finally, the doctor check the incisions sites. No infection and sealed nicely. "Continue with the TPNs for the next 24 hours, and nurse in the room at all times."

The nurse nodded and returned to her seat and the charts in front of her as the doctor went out the door to report on the captain's progress. Now they just needed to lure Keith back to himself and help him wake. Thank the Goddess and God above for their benevolence. Mikko could hardly wait to deliver the good news.

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	15. Good News

Once again, thanks to all who take the time to comment, it is greatly appreciated and encourages me to write!

Another thanks to Trek who did the Beta.

This chapter, though short ranks as one of the hardest I have written. The next portions need only tweeking before posting, so it will come faster now!

--Kristina

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The Princess, Magda, Coran, Lance, Darrell, and Hunk once again gathered in the conference room on behest of the doctor. For two days the doctor had only told them the treatment had made progress. For two evenings, the six had met with Dr. Gorma in this room. This made the third evening. The third evening of waiting for no news. The third evening ending a day of anxiety and fear. The third evening following a day of prayer and hope. The third evening of hope slipping a little more sideways. They sat in silence, without even the pretense of conversation; each lost in their own thoughts.

Coran fiddled with a data pad, the soft taps and wooshes of the stylus loud in the quiet room. He focused on the next day's activities. It helped him to cope, this busy work. Schedules of clean-up, census taking, communications with the shelters needing assistance in digging out the entrances, running interference between the ships still in orbit and the princess, overseeing castle repairs (while ensuring each group had the equipment and materials needed), and general question answering.

Magda sat in prayer, her eyes closed, her fingers moving over the dark blue beads in her lap. For each bead, she offered a short prayer for the Captain, the planet, and the people in her care, before sliding her fingers to the next one. The stones glided smoothly over her skin, slight grooves from years of prayer welcoming and cradling her fingers like an old lover, offering comfort and hope.

A coin flipped back and forth over the fingers of Lance's right hand while his left hand tapped out the coin's rhythm on his leg. His eyes flicked every few minutes to the door as though willing the doctor to come, otherwise staring straight ahead, focused on nothing.

Eyes closed, head back, fingers interlaced together over his stomach, Hunk appeared asleep except for the faint worry lines on his brow. The last member of the group, Darrell, held a data pad and stared at the screen. The young man had neither moved nor touched the pad in several minutes. His eyes stared unseeing at the screen.

Allura fought tears, blinking rapidly, as she looked over the people in the room. As Keith's condition showed no signs of improving, the bonds between them stretched and pulled against one another. "It was not our fault!" she burst out suddenly into the overwhelming silence.

The room stilled. A waiting descended as though even the universe waited for the shape of what would come.

"It was not our fault," Allura repeated, "Keith deliberately kept everyone in the dark as to his plan. We simply assumed the plan he presented to us would apply to him as well. Those six days. . ." she trailed off, her eyes focused inward. Then the princess shook her head and continued, "Those six days defy description. Already, I try to push those days away to the back of my mind as if they were a nightmare or a horror tale told around a fire in the night." The princess paused again, "And yet. And yet." She looked around the table. Lance did not look at her, but endlessly flipped the coin over and under his knuckles. Magda's beads stilled as did Coran's stylus. Hunk opened his eyes to look at the princess and the green pilot set down his pad. She looked at each of the people around the table before her. They represented surety and safety to her. Each had given up so much to defend Arus. Zarkon had destroyed Balto to try and destroy the green pilot. Lance seldom saw his friends and family on Earth. Hunk had found his love, but spent more time fighting than inventing and fixing as he would. Coran and Magda. They had become her surrogate parents and helped raise her.

Closing her eyes, Allura took a cleansing breath. Opening her eyes, she looked again at her family, her voice emerged stronger, clearer. "And yet we endured. We faced the greatest threat this planet has ever faced. Never has a force of so few stood against so many. Keith did not tell anyone what he intended, but he shone for six days as a beacon against the darkness which threaten to engulf Arus. He stood strong and defiant in the face of incalculable odds and his sacrifice will inspire many of those who suffer under the oppression of the Drule's to stand and fight. The story of this battle will spread throughout the galaxy and grow in the retelling. The reports I have read shine as a testament to the belief my people have in their Captain. For so he has become for my people. Black flies, and the people know their Captain watches over and protects them. When word spread of what," she paused to swallow hard and blink back tears, "what happened against the RoBeast, my people rallied. After six days, the Drule's had begun to make inroads against us. Let me read you what someone told me. This comes from a sergeant whose company fought near the castle." Picking up her data pad, she began to read.

"Word reached us of Black falling out of the sky and the Captain being critically injured. Scuttlebutt said he would not live. Not live! Our Captain. When I called what was left of my company together we had a meeting. Black and the Captain had given everything to save Arus and we had despaired of winning the battle. Rumor said the Captain was touch and go. It was decided. We would wipe out the Drule infestation from around the castle to protect him. He could not longer protect himself, so it would fell to us to keep the Drule shit from reaching him. After talking to my company, we spread the word around and then it began. Every company rose up and exploded. The reinforcements had finally reached us and we caught the Drule bastards in a meat grinder. It took us a day, but in the end, they surrendered. The castle would be safe, and so would our Captain. We did our job and will tell our grandchildren how we served the Captain."

Placing the data pad gently on the table, Allura traced one of the swirls on the table. "Many reports like this have come in, so the commanders tell me. The people do not doubt the captain will recover and even in his fall, he inspired my people to greatness. Galaxy Garrison analysts show that as word of Keith's fall spread, the fierceness of fighting increased and the Drule's began to lose ground. The analysts also say the fighting would have continued much longer had this surge not happened." Finally, she looked at each person around the table, "My people believe in Keith, we must as well. If we despair, than Lotor wins after all."

No one spoke, and another silence fell over the room. This time, it held less sorrow, less tension. Worry still permeated the air but without overtones of despair. Allura sent up a thought of thanks to the Goddess and God Above she had found the right words. The six people sat in silence for several more minutes before Dr. Gorma entered the room with a broad smile upon his face. All six occupants of the room sat straight in their chairs, looking to the doctor.

Before even sitting in his chair, Mikko began speaking, "We can no longer detect any presence of the parasite."

He paused as words and sounds of relief exploded around the room. Pulling out a chair, he sat with his hands folded in front of him. When everyone had quieted he continued, "That is the good news, the best news I could have at the moment. We had begun to," suddenly stopping, the doctor shook his head. "Before you ask. No, I do not know how long the captain will remain in a coma. In terms of purely physical damage. I can accelerate the healing of the surgeries, the bruises, various cuts, scrapes, and stitched areas, and the break in the leg. I can also encourage the regeneration of the tendons and tissues damaged in the left shoulder and right hand. The rest will depend on when the captain wakes. It will take time to recover all the muscle mass lost and damage to the muscles. Eventually he should regain most of not all of the use of his left arm and hand. As to the rest of his recovery," here he paused, "much depends on the captain."

Looking around the room, he saw they had no further questions and rose to leave as a soft voice stopped him.

"Doctor."

"Yes, princess?"

"He WILL wake?"

The doctor paused with one hand on a chair. "I cannot answer that question, Princess." Silence followed his soft pronouncement. After a painful pause, a quiet Gorma left a room filled with silence, unsaid words, and tears.

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	16. Hope

Authors notes:

Thanks to my husband for doing the beta on this. It may not yet be perfect, but as this is the 3rd or 4th rendition, I am ready to be done for now.

Many thanks to those who demanded the next chapter! I did leave out some tidbits about Cady (and she is NOT happy about that) so I may add them as a bloopers section later.

I have included an Earth legend here, much to the dismay of my husband. However, after having rewrote it as an Arusian one, it did not fit and no one would understand the reference. So, using my awesome powers as the author, I am leaving this gaping plot hole deliberately. :)

Please enjoy and let me know what you think!

Lastly, there are some archaic (my husband says obsolete) words and grammar included most deliberately.

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" `_Hope springs eternal', so the ancient saying goes. Humans cannot live without hope. It guides our steps betimes, and lifts our spirits in the dark hours. When faced with overwhelming odds or catastrophic circumstances, hope keeps the feet moving, the hands busy, the mind calm._

_Pandora opened the box and outward into the world leapt all the ills and travails not previously known to humankind. Illness came into the world for the first time. Humans learned grief and suffering. At the very bottom of the box lay one last gift of the gods. Hope. With hope, any suffering or travail transforms from an insurmountable problem into a small obstacle. _

_As small children, we cling to our hopes with a stubbornness only the very young and unworldly can attain. Regardless of what our parents and teachers say, a child will continue to look forward with hope for their desired outcome. Perhaps this year did not bring the exact present wanted at Harvest, but that only means next year will bring an even better one. The rain will stop in time to have a picnic and the rainbow has an end and a magic doorway into an enchanted world filled with endless delights. _

_Children grow into adults. The ability to hope in the impossible fades amongst the onslaught of schooling, working, bills, relationships, and all the realities adults face. The first disappointment of youth makes the first small chip in belief in the impossible and the improbable. It comes at a different moment for each person; perhaps the day when a child catches their parents' setting out the Harvest Bread; or when seeing a parent switching the baby tooth for some coin rather than their Guardian Spirit. Maybe the moment comes when a trusted adult breaks a promise or reneges on a bargain. Childish reality and trust begin to give way to grown-up reality and wariness. _

_Those who survive the assault on childhood with their ability to hope intact often find themselves labeled as dreamers or misfits. Yet from these people come great hopes for the future. Those who can see beyond today. Those who create incredible works of art or create inventions which change the world. Dreams wrought from the hopes of a better tomorrow and a belief in the impossible._

_War grinds down on the ability to hope for a better tomorrow. Hope fades with every drop of blood shed and the wails of the mother whose child has died from the indifference of the war machine. The bright shiny edges of hope dull against the parent who boils leaves to a thin broth for a hungry child; the planet ravaged until it gives forth no sustenance, no beauty. Most of all hope dies as war reveals the hero as a tired man who just wants to rest. Our heroes stand as a shining beacon against the dark. When the heroes fall, to whom can people turn? _

_The child. For whom all things can and will happen. To whom magic exists in every day life; the caterpillar what spins a cocoon and emerges as a butterfly; the plant slowly unfurling into life and reaching for the sun; the chick emerging from the egg. Follow the child's faith and hope. For only in that can the impossible become ordinary and the ordinary become extraordinary."_

---From the writings of Gerod

"Yeah, right," muttered Allura, throwing the book aside in frustration. "Easy to say, not so easy to follow. Follow the child. Well, Gerod did not have to deal with a world in the aftermath of yet another devastating attack. He did not have to try to find words for the mother who lost her last child defending their home." Jumping up she started to pace, letting her mounting anger push her steps faster. "Goddess and God Above he lived in the time of great prosperity on Arus! That pompous, over-educated, underwhelming," words trailed off into silence, the princess seethed as the perfect description for Gerod escaped her. Suddenly, she let out a breath and sank into the chair.

Her mother had first given her the writings of Gerod after she had overheard someone she considered a friend telling another girl Allura's secrets. Crying, Allura ran to her mother feeling betrayed. The world had acquired a small tarnish that day. Mother had shooed everyone out of the room and then opened her arms to her daughter. With her head on her mother's chest, Allura poured out everything she had overheard. The queen had not responded for several minutes, just running her hand soothingly over her daughter's hair. "Gerod would say this would be your first chip."

Confused, Allura sniffled and asked what that meant. Instead of answering, her mother opened a drawer in the desk and pulled out a slim volume. "Read this, daughter and then come to me with your questions."

The other girl forgotten in the mystery of the book, Allura thanked her mother, gave her a kiss on the cheek and ran off to find a quiet place to read. In her hurry to solve the mystery, she did not see the shadow crossing the queen's eyes nor the tears running down her cheeks as the mother mourned the loss of something precious.

Gerod had sustained Allura through the first devastating attacks, the loss of her parents, the ruin of her world. She had tried to believe with a child's faith someone would come to their rescue. Until now, she had done nothing harder. Gerod offered no comfort. Keith had lay in a coma for nearly three weeks. Dr. Gorma continued to offer platitudes, but the team knew the statistics. The longer Keith remained in a coma, the less likely he would emerge.

Hope withered as time passed. The critical time for Keith to awaken from the coma had come and gone. Gorma had no obvious medical reason. Physically, the captain continued to improve. With the parasite eradicated, his body had finally begun to absorb nutrients and put on weight. Broken bones finally started knitting as material became available for repair work. As the second week passed, Mikko ordered physical stimulation of muscles. Physical therapists came in every two hours to work with the captain. Keith had no muscle left to atrophy, therefore the therapists worked to help rebuild and replace the muscle loss. Nothing would compare to an aware patient, but the medical staff would not accept less. The therapists had worked out an around the clock schedule for the captain. They had also developed some therapies the night nurses could use. Allura had learned the therapists also took turns going on short sleep in order to help Keith.

A watery smile crossed the princess' face. Keith just did not know how many lives he touched or what his sacrifice meant to the people of Arus. He had literally given everything of himself and driven his body to the ground. More importantly, he had gifted his daughter with the hope of peace and prosperity in her lifetime at the potential cost of never coming home to her again. Yesterday, Coran had shared a letter the commander had left. Lifting it from her desk, Allura read a part of it again.

"_There are so many things I wanted to say to Cady. So many things I wanted to do. I think every parent who faces their own mortality questions their choices as a parent. One thing I know that I did right: Cady will always know how much I treasured and adored her. Perhaps her Uncles and I spoiled her, but she brought us such joy and delight, how could we do anything else? It is for her and for every child on Arus I can make this terrible decision. My heart lies heavy and beats sadly, for I know the chance of seeing the peaceful and prosperous Arus for myself and watching the children learn to play without fear in the meadows and parks. _

"_Lance will laugh at my over-preparedness, but enclosed are letters for Cady. I have tried in the last few years to remember my childhood, friends, and family. It should give her a sense of her history and family. I know she will have many more stories and tales from her Uncles, Aunts, and cousins, but I wanted her to have my perspective as well. _

"_There is more to say, but please always tell Cady this: she gave my life a reason and a purpose. She helped bond five young men and create a family in a way few people can ever experience. The instant the doctor placed her in my arms, my life and life's purpose shifted. As a parent my most important job is to keep Cady safe. I am and always will remain willing to sacrifice anything to keep my daughter safe and give her peace. Nothing will ever take the place of that goal. Nothing._

"_I also will take this burden for all the parents of Arus who cannot protect their children as I can. As Arus has given us a home, so will I stand firm against any who try to harm her children."_

Allura slowly lowered the letter to her desk. It continued for several pages, but these passages brought the princess a measure of comfort. Rarely did Keith show such emotion and passion so obviously. Few people saw beyond the stoic exterior and adherence to rules and regulations. No one who saw the captain and his daughter doubted his devotion and protectiveness but only a handful saw the great love and joy behind them.

Cady did not doubt her father would come back to her. He had promised her to return if possible. Like Gerod said, she did not doubt and hoped and believed in the improbable. Her caretakers had tried to prepare her for the chance her father would not wake. Each time she had solemnly looked at the speaker and said, "Just wait. He will wake up when he feels better." With that simple statement she proved Gerod right about a child's ability to hope and believe in the impossible and improbable. Perhaps Allura could take a lesson from her.

Shaking her head, Allura put the book aside. The hour had grown late and tomorrow brought another day of recovery and rebuilding. Bunkers remained buried, crops needed planting, stragglers needed shelter, food, and medical care, and the list continued. At least this time, the loss of property did not mean a meager existence in caves, struggling to find enough to eat to prevent people from starving. This time Arus had prepared for the worst. The next year would prove difficult due to the loss of major crops. No one would go hungry although everyone would have to tighten their belts for a time. Only three more months of the growing season, if the Goddess and God Above could hold winter for a time. Enough for quick growing crops. With some towns still buried, not enough fields could be planted.

Taking a breath, Allura deliberately brought her thoughts to a screeching halt. She would do no one any good by brooding. Best to sleep and start fresh in the morning. Tossing her robe carelessly at the foot of the bed, the princess crawled into the covers. With years of practice, she pushed aside all thoughts and concentrated on the quiet in her mind. Exhaustion of weeks of hard labor, war, and recovery efforts had her sleeping within a few minutes. Allura knew nothing more until morning.


	17. No Change

For all of you who continue to follow this story:

Shukran

Sukria

Gracias

Grazie

Merci

Köszönöm

Köszi

Kiitoksia

Thank you

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Allura turned the corner for her daily visit with Keith. To her surprise, she saw Lance sitting in the chair next to the bed. The red pilot had stopped visiting except for a brief check in the evenings. The sight of his best friend and commander lying unresponsive left him with feelings he did not want to analyze. As she watched, Lance threw his head back and laughed. Hurrying her steps, hope flared as she crossed the last few meters to the room. Stopping dead in her tracks, she saw Keith sitting up in bed with Cady in his arms, a smile on his face.

She must have gasped because all three faces turned toward her. With trembling steps, she forced herself to approach the bed, "You are awake!"

"Of course I am awake, Princess," replied Keith, "the good doctor has promised to release me this morning, remember?"

"But, I do not understand." Allura grasped the end of the bed and looked at the pilots in confusion. "You were in a coma just a few hours ago and Dr. Gorma is releasing you?"

Lance stood from his chair and placed a hand on Allura's forehead. "Think she has caught whatever you had Keith." He sent a smirk over his shoulder, "Now, don't they call this the _kissing_ disease?"

Groaning, Keith grabbed a pillow from behind him and threw it at Lance. Allura blinked in confusion as it seemed to pass right through Lance. She rubbed her eyes, trying to clear them.

A buzzing noise grew louder, drowning out the laughter of the men and the little girl. The room seemed to fade around her and the buzzing grew louder. Panicked, Allura tried to reach for Lance or Cady and her hands passed right through them.

The room went black.

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Allura's eyes flew open and she quickly up-righted herself from where she had fallen asleep across the desk. The loud buzzing beside her ear called her to yet another meeting and griping session. In a fit of temper, she threw the device across the room where it fell into a corner continuing to buzz, albeit muffled by its new location. Slumping back to the desk, the princess folded her arms in front of her and lay down her head. Tears leaked from behind closed lids as the reality of the dream hit.

Only another damned dream. She had lost count of the number of times she woke during the night alternately joyful, confused, ecstatic, and thankful Keith had woken and lived only to realize her imagination had supplied another illusion. At first, she had recognized them as dreams. As her insomnia increased, so her ability to tell the dream from the reality decreased. The worries of the planet and her people kept her mind spinning. Allura found herself turning on the light every five or ten minutes as another thought crossed her mind and she wished to jot it down before forgetting.

Lance had stopped into see her earlier, appearing haggard and even his attempts at his usual humor fell flat. He continued to try and take on all of Keith's normal tasks as well as patrolling, assisting with recovery, only a portion of the myriad of required tasks. Lifting her head, she uncrossed her arms and rested her chin on the palms of her hands, fingers going along side her cheeks. Eyes narrowing she thought about the people around her. For the last three months, no one had taken a break from preparation, training, battle, rescue work, rebuilding, and the myriad of tasks needed doing. The castle staff had worked overtime to clean what they could after this latest attack while performing normal duties and recovery work. The kitchens ran 24-hours every day feeding troops, mechanics, hospital staff, and the regular component of castle staff.

As she sat, Allura wondered when the last time she had taken a break much less anyone else around her. Since before the announcement regarding Lotor and his return, came the answer. Abruptly, she sat upright in her chair and nodded to herself. With a press of the button, she summoned her secretary who arrived momentarily.

She smiled at Allura, "Just waiting outside the doors. I did not want to disturb you until absolutely necessary." Having worked for the princess for nearly three years, she had become accustomed to her employers work habits. Just before a meeting, the princess usually reviewed any documents necessary or used the few minutes to attend to another task. Arriving early only meant she waited on others and had less time to work. Ialla always timed her knock to leave just a minute to finish a last thought and arrive at the meeting on time.

Meetings with the princess began when the princess arrived. When Ialla had first started working for her, Allura had often waited for minor dignitaries or officials. Finally, Ialla had enough. She wanted to work for the princess, but not use her insane hours. With the help of Captain Kogane, she had developed a plan and approached the princess. Starting the following week, meetings would only occur during certain hours and would start when the princess arrived. Anyone arriving late to a group meeting would find themselves waiting until an appropriate break had occurred. Arriving late to a private meeting resulted in a cancelled meeting. Ialla would reschedule the meeting once. If the person did not arrive on time the second time, Ialla would assume the reason for the meeting no longer existed.

At first, Allura had blocked the idea saying as Princess her people needed access to her. With the Captain's backing, Ialla had stated a good ruler left time for themselves. If she did not take care of herself, how could she expect to take care of her people? Smiling, the secretary remembered the astounded look on her face. When Ialla had suggested the Captain would approve, Allura had quickly capitulated. The staff knew of Allura's feelings for the Voltron Leader and how she wanted to impress him.

The Captain also knew of these feelings, but never took advantage of them. He had taken his oath to protect and defend Arus to heart. The castle staff had watched him take the young monarch under his wing to teach her to defend her planet and herself. When the ruling council threatened to take away that right from Allura, he had neatly put them in their place. The Captain rarely raised his voice or spoke harshly, but few would stand and argue with him. He had hired Ialla to assist Allura. Rather than argue with the princess about her need for a secretary, he had simply presented Ialla as a fait accompli. She remembered he had told the princess he needed more time to train her on the lion and in self-defense. Therefore, he had interviewed and hired a secretary to help her with the day-to-day matters of rule.

Allura had protested, and Ialla remembered the captain's words. "You chose to fight for your planet in the most personal of ways. You chose to stand on the front line to defend those who cannot defend themselves. You chose your danger over your people's. I have supported and defended you in this decision, initially against my better judgment. You have a responsibility to maintain yourself in the best fighting condition possible. As your commanding officer, I have noticed your performance lately, lacking. This cannot continue. Either you accept help or I will find a replacement."

The captain had spoken in a matter-of-fact voice. Allura had turned to look at the woman standing next to the captain. Ialla knew what she saw. A woman in her late-thirties with dark hair streaked liberally with white. She had worn her best clothes for the meeting with the princess, carefully mended many times and specially re-dyed for the occasion. The simple peasant skirt reached only to her mid-calf. The rest of the material had gone to repairs and patches. She had turned the skirt several times and carefully darned any rips with small seams. Her simple blouse had thin patches, but a light under layer dyed the same color hid most of them. Like most of the planet, she made do with what they could scrounge. Since the arrival of the five pilots, conditions had started improving, but the first production of cloth would not finish for several more months. Little had come in with the relief convoys as equipment and food took priority.

She had dark green eyes with streaks of lighter green. Lines around her eyes and mouth showed she had used to smile much. The war with Zarkon and Doom had taken much of the laugher and life from the people. She looked thin, like much of the planet. No longer did they eek sustenance lives out of the caves, but it would take more time before the people looked healthy and plump.

The princess looked back to the captain, who simply stood, waiting the princess' decision. Sighing, she turned to smile at the woman next to Keith. "Ialla, is that correct? If you could come with me, I will show you my office and we can start on learning to work together."

"As you wish, your highness. Captain Kogane has already given me some instruction as to what you will require." Ialla hid a smile at the look which quickly passed over the princess' face. The captain knew she would try to work around his directives and simply took the possibility away from the princess. Although she would work for Princess Allura, Ialla's instructions came from Captain Kogane.

The Captain gave a brief bow to both ladies, "I shall leave to become acquainted." With that, he turned down the hallway, leaving the women eyeing each other.

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Allura smiled to herself. Over three years later and she could not imagine her life without her assistant. Ialla kept her organized and ready for whatever came. She had lost her family in the war with Doom and found the challenge of managing the princess to fill a void in her life. Within six months of working as Allura's assistant, Ialla had whittled the amount of daily paperwork and the amount of complaints she had to personally attend to a manageable amount. As the world started recovering, Ialla had approached the princess about expanding her staff. She could still handle the workload, but foresaw needing more people. Allura had given her carte blanche and the quiet office became a suite of rooms with a receptionist, page room, and four other women who had lost their families to Doom. Each woman had her own story.

The sound of a throat clearing brought Allura back to the present. Ialla stood waiting in the doorway. "Your highness?"

Rising, Allura reflexively brushed her hands over her trousers in an attempt to smooth them. "Just woolgathering, Ialla. I am ready. I also want you to work up a proclamation. When the military gives us the all clear, we are having a day of celebration. All work will cease and we will light bonfires and tell the stories of the men and women who have given their lives for our freedom and for our home."

Walking to the door, Allura continued to give details on what she wanted for the celebration. Ialla's fingers flew over her data pad as door closed softly behind the two.

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Over the next week, Allura noticed people walked a little straighter and attitudes had started to look toward the positive. As the news of the proclamation for the celebration had spread, people flooded the castle with requests ranging from simple to absurd. Ialla dealt with most of the requests; only passing those on to the princess she felt needed her personal touch, or when the princess needed a boost in her spirits.

Although Captain Kogane continued to improve in body, he still showed no signs of waking. For each day which passed with this news, the princess' spirits fell a little further. Ialla took it upon herself to find the positive in any news coming from the hospital. The celebrations and the resulting boost in her people's attitude went far into helping the princess stave off the depression.

Ialla looked over the latest report from Doctor Gorma. Physical therapy continued as did slow weight gain. Although the captain still looked like a starving slave, he looked better. Tests showed his left arm with extensive nerve damage and would require months of therapies and possibly more surgery to repair. The report continued, but Ialla carefully edited it to the most positive aspects before she would hand it to the princess. Originally, she did not edit the reports before giving them to Allura, but as the first week of the captain's coma persisted, found herself spinning the reports in a more positive manner. The princess did not have the luxury of wallowing over Captain Kogane's condition; too many other matters needed her attention. Ialla knew, in this instance, her interference made the difference in the princess' ability to function.

At the bottom of the report, Ialla's eyes widened. For the first time in nearly three weeks, a machine had detected a period of higher brain function. It had lasted less than a full minute and had not repeated at the time of the report. Chewing her lip, she looked at the innocent lines. The incident had not repeated. Less than one full minute. With a sigh, Ialla deleted the reference and paused before sending a concise copy to the princess' pad. The people needed their leader in front of them, not sitting at the side of a dying hero. She had her orders from Captain Kogane, and would follow them. He had given her a new purpose in life, a new life really. When he hired Ialla to help the princess, they had spoken at length regarding the captain's view of the princess. In essence, he needed Ialla to teach the princess how to delegate, how to take time for herself, and how to prioritize. Allura, he continued, although practical, had a streak of sentimentality which could undermine her ability to rule. He needed Ialla to act as a buffer between that sentimentality with ruthless efficiency. The people of Arus knew to play on their ruler's heartstrings; therefore, the ruler needed a filter. The captain believed Ialla, with her practicality in organizing the caves where the remains of her village had taken shelter and allocation of resources based on need and return would serve the planet well.

Ialla had taken that challenge upon herself. Stiffing her shoulders, she sent the report to the princess, then turned to the next item on her agenda.

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	18. Progress!

Ever have an outline for a story, and then the story develops its own personality? At the end of this story, if wanted, I will post the 'outtakes' of cut scenes, and ones which just went bad!

Thanks again for following. I love and adore the comments and critiques!

Diehard, here are Cady and Black for you. Cady is approximately 7 years old, and I based her vocabulary on my son's who turns 7 in July. Truthfully, my son talks as much, if not more, than Cady does here!

I have nearly finished the next chapter, but the next couple weeks will prove extremely busy. My promise to work on this as much as time allows!

--KM

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". . .and then Nanny Magda said perhaps the garden was not the best place for a water fight, cause we would just water the weeds and muss the plants! But, I didn't Uncle Hunk, promise! I stepped over them. It's not MY fault that Jemma fell over into the wheelbarrow. It was filled with icky stuff too, Uncle Hunk. Nanny Magda said the horse poop would help the plants grow, but I do not want horse poop on my food. It would be really yucky, and you know what else, Uncle Hunk?"

Hunk let the flow of chatter flow over him, grunting once in a while at a pause in Cady's recitation, or throwing in a generic question. Nanny had handed Cady over after lunch with the request she not return until suppertime. A small batch of cookies dangled in front of the yellow pilot had quickly sealed the deal. With supplies of sugar, flour, hell, everything food related, low he would not turn down cookies! Besides, it would make a great bedtime snack with Saria, IF she made it back from town.

Pausing, the man leaned back on his knees and looked at the panel in front of him. Why the damned thing did not function, escaped him. Raising his hands to the ceiling, he linked his fingers and arms behind his head and stretched with the palms facing outward, head looking at the ceiling of the cabin.

"And Black says he is really, really sorry he cannot help more, but it is taking more than anticipated to hold his person close. Besides, today was a good day 'cause he says Daddy came as close to us since the porcupine guy and it makes him really happy so he promises to try and be better about the reconnecting thingies. And anyway,"

"STOP!" Hunk interrupted suddenly as what she said penetrated his fogged brain. "Back up, slow down."

Cady looked at her uncle, wide-eyed. She knew people thought of Uncle Hunk as a big teddy bear who never said a cross-word or raised his voice, but Cady knew better. She could wheedle her way around him most of the time, but when he had THAT tone, it meant business. Wiggling on her seat, she looked up at Hunk. "Which part?"

"The part about your Daddy, sweetheart." Hunk turned his body and sat with one leg outstretched, the other bent at the knee.

"Ohh, that part. Black told me today Daddy actually talked to him a little." She paused a moment and cocked her head, "Is that ok to say, Black?" She sat quietly in a listening pose. The yellow pilot just waited. Over the last couple weeks, this had occurred with increasing frequency. Hunk reported all the conversations to Dr. Gorma, but no one else. He did not know if Cady really heard Black or if she used her conversations as a coping mechanism. The good doctor said it could go either way. She did seem to have more information about Keith's condition than her Uncles relayed to her, but she also spent time in the hospital with her dad and with the other kids still recovering there and could pick up on conversations between medical personnel. Since it appeared to help Cady cope, the doctor simply asked Hunk to report what she said. He had cautiously felt out Nanny, and the other uncles, but Cady did not talk about Black to anyone else.

It made sense in a fashion. She and Hunk spent far more time with Black and each other than the others. Nanny had the castle and the crèche to supervise, Lance spent more time out of the castle than in it, Darrell spent his days and many of his nights wrestling with the castle systems and replacement, and Coran and Allura dashed from fire to fire trying to keep the planet functioning. Of all of Cady's family, only Saria and Hunk had the time to spend with her. Cady knew she could always come find him and he would either include her in what he did or find something for her to do, not always useful. He and Saria had talked the night before about Cady. Saria felt very sorry for her position. As Keith's daughter, many people made demands on her beyond her age and ability. With Keith unavailable, some had turned to Cady for answers she did not have, nor would have, for years to come.

Saria had come the instant she had heard about Keith. Dr. Gorma had sedated all the pilots leaving Cady at loose ends. When Hunk had heard how Saria had simply taken the girl under her wing, he had fallen even more deeply in love with her. How fortunate the day he had needed an apology for Nanny and walked into her shop. She had become Aunt Saria the day she met Cady. Hunk lost himself in the thought of the woman he would take to wife. Looking down, the man saw his hands gripping too tightly on the tool he held. Had Lotor not attacked, the ceremony would have already taken place. One more crime to add to the list of the monster. Saria had simply looked at him when he expressed his anger and replied a formal ceremony only celebrated what they had already decided.

"Uncle Hunk?"

"Hmm? Sorry, sweetheart, lost in thought."

"You ok?"

"Yes, sweetheart. Just missing Aunt Saria."

Cady brightened, "She is coming back TONIGHT! And promised to play cards with me!"

Hunk looked at Cady suspiciously, "What game?"

"Adding-on casino!1"

Mentally, Hunk sighed. Lance had started teaching their niece the rudiments of poker and kept attempting to corrupt Saria into learning. Thank goodness tonight had nothing to do with _Lance's_ lessons. "Can you tell me what Black said?"

"Oh, right." Cady took a deep breath, "Ok, so Black says he knows he has not been helping with the repairs but he really needed to watch Daddy closely, like when Nanny watches the babies. Since he and Daddy are connected, he had to pick Daddy first over himself. OK?"

Hunk pondered the thought a moment; then nodded for Cady to continue.

"So then he said that today Daddy finally talked to him for a minute and took a step closer to Black. He said it made Daddy very tired, but that Daddy promised to come and talk again later. Black says he will try to be better about repairs, but that right now it is a very important place where Daddy is." Cady screwed up her nose and thought hard, "Ok I think that is all."

Hunk nodded and turned the tool over absently in his hands, looking around the cockpit. Finally, he nodded to himself and carelessly tossed the tool into his box. "Cady-did-what, we should go find a horse and go for a ride. We have been cooped up here too long as it is!"

Cady shrieked with delight and launched herself at her Uncle. He effortlessly picked her up and strode out the door heading for the stables. Fresh air did wonders for clearing out the cobwebs. . . and for pondering interesting statements by little girls who knew more than they should.

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"And that is about what she relayed, doc." Hunk sat in one of the chairs across from Dr. Gorma in his office.

Mikko sat with his hands laced together on top of the desk in front of him. When the pilot finished his recitation, he picked up a data pad laying in front of him. This corresponds to an occurrence this morning. The monitors picked up some higher brain function. It lasted less than a minute, and has not yet repeated. We will keep a closer eye on the captain for the next several hours. If what Catherine reported is true. ." He trailed off, eyes focused on the wall, setting the data pad back on the desk. "Then we may need to reevaluate the relationship the pilots have with their lions." He shook his head, "But that is for another time. Thank you for informing me, Lieutenant. Please let me know if she says anything further."

Nodding, the pilot stood at the implied dismissal and left the room. The doctor leaned back in his chair, fingers of his right hand drumming on the arm. After several minutes, he picked his data pad and looked at the information on the Captain once more. One episode of detectable higher brain function. Since it had not repeated in the last twelve hours, the doctor had dismissed it as an anomaly. In his experience, coma patients would experience the slow return of consciousness, but not with such large gaps of time between detectable occurrences.

Tossing the data pad carelessly on the desk, Mikko laced his hands together behind his head and closed his eyes as he tried to piece together what the yellow pilot had relayed to him regarding Captain Kogane's daughter in the last few weeks. After several minutes, the doctor opened his eyes and began making notes while talking aloud to himself. He had found speaking the words aloud often helped crystallize this thoughts and find connections otherwise missed.

"Ok, Mikko, take from the top. Initially, the child relayed to the Lieutenant from Black her Dad was further away than ever before. Now, that could correspond to the Captain actually dying and then coming back. As far as I can recall, no prior life-threatening injury compared in severity to this one. Different circumstances. Also, the Captain did not believe he would emerge from this war intact. He expected to die, therefore would not fight death as hard as before. Ok, makes sense.

"Next, she reported his fear, depression, and exhaustion. Fear of what. What did she say? Burden, yes, the Captain did not want to burden anyone. He knew the severity of his injuries, also knew the damage his body had taken from the Agappon. The chances of a complete recovery are exceedingly small. In fact, I would expect he will not recover fully. Side bar, check in with therapists. Back to the main topic. We managed to stabilize the captain and physically his body has started to heal. So, time to make some suppositions.

"One. For four years, the captain has taken responsibility for the defense of the planet and all that entails. Rarely a vacation, and runs constantly on a sleep debit.

"Two. No one has come to help plan defenses and support from his Galaxy Garrison has come only rarely. They took a young man with great training, but little in the way of experience, sent him with other young men of similar caliber and essentially abandoned them to their own devices. Few men in the galaxy could have withstood four years of such grand responsibility.

"Three. Finally an end in sight with the new pilots coming from Garrison, the Arusian forces ready to graduate the first class in over a decade, and then word everything face obliteration once again. Hmm, great deal of stress and increased pressure.

"Four. Essentially sentencing himself to slow death. Knowing the chance of survival stood at less than ten percent. Accepting the sacrifice for the safety of the people of Arus. In essence, let go of the need to fight death any longer.

"Five. We yanked him back. Did not let him make the final step. So, look at this from a different perspective. I know in order for the people to have a chance of survival, I let go of mine. I prepare everything for my family. I say good-bye to the people most important to me and then step into battle without looking back. Then for six days, my body withers slowly; injuries, exhaustion, and drugs taking their toll. My uniform hangs loosely, and I wear extra socks on my feet to keep them from slipping around in my boots. I ask someone to add fasteners to my uniforms to keep the loose material from interfering with my movements. My lion takes a beating until, like me, it is held together with a wish and a prayer. Then a last battle. Already injured, trying to return to base for ten minutes of down time and repairs to my machine, it finally happens. One too many injuries and no time left. It will be my final battle and help has not arrived. So, I fight and do not let my team know the truth. The people must be protected. Then, just like an avenging angel, at the last moment, help finally arrives. I can let go. Someone else will take up the slack and I can finally let go. I can feel my body shutting down, but it is a relief. The pain becomes overwhelming then fades. Nothing hurts and peace beckons. I already accepted this, and do not fight any longer. Then, something stops my journey. The body I left behind does not fade and now I am trapped. I do not want to return to the wreck I left behind. I am tired of the responsibility. I just want peace. So, I stay at the edge where life and death meet at the crossroads."

Mikko blinked and looked at the data pad in front of him. Suddenly it made sense, if the Black and pilot did have a connection, then only the lion had a chance of reaching his pilot. They needed a way to coax the captain back to himself. Nodding to himself, the doctor decided to make a leap of faith and let himself believe.

Standing, he strode to the door and then down the hallway to the Captain's room. Pausing in the doorway, he looked inside. Machines made soft noises in the stillness. A nurse sat at the table and chair, obviously updating charts. She looked up as Dr. Gorma paused in the doorway. "Doctor."

He smiled, "Take a break, nurse. I thought to sit in the quiet for a few minutes."

Nodding, the nurse gathered the charts and exited the room. The doctor carefully closed the door behind her. Pulling the chair close to the bed he looked over at the machine the yellow pilot had installed according to Black's instructions. Looking at the closed door, the doctor suddenly felt slightly foolish. Taking a deep breath, he scolded himself for delaying and then cleared his throat. "Black Lion, I am Dr. Gorma. Truthfully, I feel slightly foolish talking to a box, but I am taking a leap of belief. Goddess and God above know nothing else seems to have helped. Perhaps you can relay some thoughts of mine to the Captain." Gorma paused to gather his thoughts in a semi-logical manner, "I understand the Captain's reluctance to return. He had made his peace with his sacrifice. We did not let him go quietly, and rather high-handedly decided we needed him without considering what HE needed. I cannot apologize for saving him, but I can apologize for not considering his needs.

"Please reassure the Captain his body can recover. I will not lie and say it will ever be the same as before, but he will fly again. He will not burden anyone with his care in the long term, and in the short term; for what he has sacrificed for Arus and her people, helping him will not be a burden on anyone, but rather a way for us to give a small measure back to him.

"Cady misses her Dad. She comes in several times a day. We have found her to be a blessing in entertaining the few children still her in the hospital who need care. Catherine is an extraordinary child.

"The rest of the team visits when possible. Lance cannot stand to sit here long, so usually only stays long enough to give a brief summary and then leave. We all feel the emptiness of the room."

Dr. Gorma paused, listening to the quiet sounds of the room. Strange, how soothing he found the noises. To him, it meant life. Silence. Silence meant he had lost the war. The quiet beeping of monitors and the soft shushing of machines reassured him. "Captain, I cannot offer meaningless platitudes or reassurance. This planet and her people still need you. The numbers of prayers and offerings of hope for your recovery overwhelm my staff. We try to respond to each of them, but it will take time. For most of this planet, you represent not only the hope for a better future, but living proof someone can rise again and again from the ashes. I cannot imagine the burden this places on your shoulders. I can understand wanting to pass this responsibility to someone else. You have done more, given more than any one person should. Yet this planet, these people ask more of you. Captain, you are yet needed and wanted. Please give us more time with you and let us show you what you have done for us."

For several minutes, Dr. Gorma sat in the quiet, asking the Goddess and God Above to convey his message to the Captain and to take pity on the man to give him, not the peace of death, but peace of mind. Rousing himself, Mikko stood and picked up the chart at the end of the bed. Nodding to himself, he moved to the Captain's left hand and tested the reflexes. Slow, but improved. It looked as though he should gain nearly all of the movement back. Taking stock, the doctor cataloged each of the wounds and reevaluated his treatment prognosis. Gently working atrophied muscles, he tested the range of motion for arms, shoulders, elbows, and fingers. The legs did not worry him as much as the only outside damage came from the broken ankle, healing nicely. "Well, Captain, I think the prognosis looks good. I cannot say for certain you will regain everything you lost in your left shoulder, arm, and hand but it looks better than several days ago. Recovery will take months, if not a year or more. Much will depend on how long you sleep. At this point, physical activity, food, therapies, and easy living are the best fixes. Wake up soon." With a note to the nurses to check for any developing sores, Gorma strode out of the room.

Several hours later, the machines would register a longer burst of activity in the Captain's mind.

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Over the next day, the monitors would register increasing activity in the Captain's mind. The time between active cycles decreased and the cycles increased in duration. The doctor felt cautiously optimistic the Captain would wake soon, but kept his reports to the team brief. Several nurses reported hearing a faint rumbling in the room, but could not track the source. The doctor just smiled and told them not to worry.

The second day after detecting the first burst of activity, the nurses reported a brief stage of beta waves. Elated, Dr. Gorma waited until he reached his office and closed the door before dancing in a circle. Several minutes later, he exited his office calm and collected with a twinkle in his eye. Over the course of the day, the monitors showed an increase in beta waves indicating dreaming and increased periods of theta waves. The nurses reported twitching muscles and some eye movements indicating a dream state.

At shift change, the night crew had to chase out the day shift. No one wanted to leave and miss the Captain waking. Dr. Gorma had to threaten, cajole, and bully the nurses to leaving and taking their rest. He had already called his wife to let her know he would spend the night at the hospital.

The night passed swiftly with one nurse reporting the Captain's eyes had opened briefly at one point, although it did not appear he focused on anything. As the doctor looked over the monitor reports, he saw the appearance of alpha waves, the precursor to wakefulness.

Just before 5am, a nurse came bursting into the doctor's office, waking him from a fitful sleep. "Dr. Gorma, he woke! Come quickly!"

Mikko found himself out the door and down the hallway before his brain had caught up to his body. Walking into the Captain's room, he checked the monitors and saw the evidence of consciousness. He approached the bed to see the man in it sleeping once more. "Tell me what you observed."

"I was folding linens when I felt like someone watched me. Looking up, I saw the Captain had his eyes open and focused on the sheet in my hands. When I stopped, he transferred his gaze to mine. I stood and walked over to the bed. As I did, his eyes lost focus and closed once more, but you can see his mind and body are hovering around the waking point."

"Hmmm." The doctor watched the monitors for a moment and then nodded. "It will probably take several hours for him to wake completely. I believe I need to be here when it happens. Could you please ring for some coffee and breakfast?"

"Yes, doctor. Right away."

"And nurse?"

"Yes, doctor?"

"I know we want to jump for joy and spread the word, but for now, please keep the news to yourself. Before we conclude the Captain is awake, I would like some solid evidence."

"Yes, doctor. Mums the word!"

Mikko turned back to his patient and carefully picked up his wrist, checking the pulse. Stronger than the prior day. Good. As he watched, the Captain's eyes started moving below the lids. "That's it Captain Kogane, come back to us."

Several minutes later, the movement subsided. Sighing, the doctor went to sit in the chair abandoned by the nurse. The next few hours would last years.

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1 A game played with a standard deck of cards. Each player is dealt 4 cards with 4 face up on the table. Players can either make a match and take the cards or "build" an equation. For example, the player has a three and a seven in their hand. A four is on the board. They can place the four on the three and declare seven. On the next turn they place the seven on top and take it. The person with the most points at the end of the game wins. 11 points possible: 3 for having the most cards, 1 for each ace, 1 for having the most spades, 2 for the big casino (ten of diamonds) and 1 for little casino (2 of spades).


	19. Closer yet

Hi!

Originally I had only planned ten chapters for this story, but as it developed and the characters gave their input, it grew. There will be at least two more chapters past this and an epilogue.

Trivia: I named Cady after my older sister (although she was a Katie) and my mom (who went mostly by Liz).

My apologies for the long delay. Life with the children exploded, leaving little time to write. Summer fast approaches and I hope to take advantage of long play times in parks!

Wade Wells deserves the thanks for giving me a kick start to post the next chapter. I did not spend as much time editing as normal, please feel free to let me know of any glaring errors.

The final two chapters currently wait for editing and there will be one or two more before then. Thank you for the comments and critiques, I greatly appreciate the input.

So, does Keith recover fully? What do YOU think?

Enjoy, I have!

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"Catherine Elizabeth Kogane!"

Cady jumped and whirled around to see her Uncle standing in the doorway, hair standing on end, and looking around guiltily. She had slipped away from Nanny Magda, snuck into the repair bay and then into Black. He wanted to tell her about Daddy, and since his hospital room had too many people, she came to him. Licking her lips she smiled big, "Yes, Uncle Hunk?"

Hunk merely looked at her, hands on his hips not saying a word.

The little girl turned her gaze to the ceiling, and looked around the cabin. After about ten seconds the words poured forth, "So, Black wanted to tell me about Daddy but the doctor and nurse are in Daddy's room so I asked him what he wanted to do and then he asked me to come here and I asked Nanny Magda but she said now was not a good time and she could not come here with me because dinner needed serving soon and it would just have to wait until tomorrow because we all needed a early night and baths and she could not spare anyone right now to come but Black needed to talk to me and so I just _had_ to come, see Uncle Hunk?" She took a deep breath and looked at Uncle Hunk hopefully.

The man took a deep breath and then a second one. "Did it occur to you that we would worry? Nanny looked around and you had gone. You did not tell her, nor any of the helpers. They could not find you anywhere and you scared Nanny. She called me and I had to leave what I was doing to come and find you. Uncle Darrell stopped working to find you. The princess, Ialla, Uncle Lance, who came in from patrol, plus many of the castle personnel stopped their work to come and find you. Sit there just a minute." With that her Uncle activated his com unit and informed everyone he had found the missing child and would bring her back soon.

Disconnecting the com and setting it to a privacy setting so he could speak with Cady uninterrupted, he turned back to the little girl. She looked chastised, sitting with her head lowered, hands in her lap, and legs still. Only when she felt sick, sad, or guilty did she sit without moving. Sighing, the big man rubbed the back of his neck with both hands, interlocking the fingers and looking up at the ceiling. He walked over to pick up Cady and then sat himself in the pilot's chair with the child on his lap. "Talk to me, Cady."

"I _told_ you. Black said he needed to talk to me about Daddy and it was important and to come quickly. Nanny would not listen and so, I just came. I did not _mean_ to make everyone worry Uncle Hunk, but it is _Black_ and _Daddy_. Do you understand?" She kept her head leaning against her uncle's chest, listening to his heart and his breathing, fingers playing with a loose thread on his uniform. He did not answer her right away, but Cady knew he was thinking. Other than her Daddy, he was the only one who thought about what she said and did not treat her like she was dumb.

Finally, the man spoke. "I understand why you left, Catherine Elizabeth, but that does not excuse your selfishness. You caused many good people to worry and to quit their tasks because you could not wait until after dinner or until someone could escort you here. I am sure if you ask Black, he will tell you the same thing. His news could wait for a small amount of time to ensure your safety."

Cady looked down at her toes, "I know, Uncle Hunk. Black is agreeing with everything you say. I am really, really sorry. I just wanted to hear about Daddy."

Hunk wrapped her arms tight around his niece and squeezed tight. "I really understand Cady-did-what. Do you want to share?"

In the last week, Hunk had come to accept Black did speak with her and perhaps even with Keith. Nothing else could explain her knowledge of Keith's condition. Truthfully, Hunk felt a little envy at the connection she and her father had with the lion. None of the other pilots reported, or admitted, to any kind of communication, only occasional wisps of emotions. Princess had found comfort more than once in flying her Blue. Lance found release for his aggression and pent-up energy rocketing around in Red. Darrell had said he found inspiration for new inventions, fixes for old ones, and encouragement while sitting in Green with a pad of paper and pencil. As for Hunk, he had always felt a kind of acceptance and pride to boost his sense of worth. Although his mind knew his value to the team and Keith often reinforced the idea, his heart needed further convincing. The rest of the team ranked top or near top of their class while Hunk always felt he lagged one step behind. With his Yellow, he found a partner to fit himself completely. One who gave trust implicitly and bolstered his ego and sense of self-worth whenever he questioned his role on the most prestigious team in the universe. Thinking quietly, the pilot wondered if his acceptance of the communication Black exhibited with Cady and acknowledging the emotions he felt from Yellow could open him to the next step. In their four years on Arus, he had witnessed dozens of occurrences where only the acceptance of magic explained them.

His mind wandered for a few minutes as he sat in silence with Cady. She often needed to talk, but with him, often just sat and cuddled until she felt ready to tell him what bothered her. He had learned he could learn more information from silence than from asking probing questions. Let Keith and Sven handle the big questions and the heart-to-hearts with Cady, he would take the small moments and cherish them.

When Cady began to speak, she did not look at him, just continued to sit with her head on his chest, fingering the loose thread. "Black said Daddy is very close now. He hears and is listening and has said he is trying to come back, but the way back is mixed-up and not the same as the way out. I am not sure what that means, Uncle Hunk, but I know that my Daddy will wake up soon. Black says Daddy sill has big wounds. But his heart is strong and he will be here for a long long time. Black does not want to let Daddy go yet, because I am not ready to take his place. Someday, I will fly Black just like Daddy, but that is not for a long, Daddy. It makes it much easier for him when he has someone who can hear him. Dr. Gorma has done a very good job taking care of Daddy and we just have to remember that Daddy will still be Daddy but a little bit different. Black says more changes are coming and we have to be ready for them." Cady fell silent.

The yellow pilot hugged her for a moment before relaxing. "This is wonderful news Cady. Can I share this with anyone?"

He felt the girl shake her head. "It will not happen until tomorrow. Daddy still has a long way to go, and Black is making sure he is taking it slowly. He also says at first Daddy will not wake for very long and still sleep a lot. His mind has to fix things inside. Black says 're-es-tab-lish connections.'"

"Hmmm," said the man, "Perhaps we should go to bed early, it appears tomorrow will prove an interesting day."

"Uncle, Hunk?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"I am in BIG trouble, right?"

"Yep, you are."

"The 'No- dessert- for- a- long- time-' kind of trouble?"

"That and the 'Nanny-needs-help-in-the-kitchen' kind."

"Uh-oh."

"Plus, the 'You-will-write-an-apology' kind."

"How many?"

"It will take a while. You need to write to Nanny Magda, the Princess, the team, the people you sneaked passed. . ."

Cady's eyes grew huge. "THAT many?"

Hunk nodded, "THAT many."

"Oh." She paused and then looked up at her Uncle, "I think I am really tired Uncle Hunk, maybe I need to go to bed early and really thinking about what I did wrong."

Laughing, the man stood and with ease of much practice, swung the little girl to his shoulders. "At least act sorry or Nanny will see right through your little act."

"Yes, Uncle Hunk. I promise."

The man strode out of the lion with his charge. Behind them, the control panel suddenly activated and a frenzy of activity started.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The next morning, Cady gobbled her food, sitting at the edge of her seat. Even Magda's reminders to 'Eat like a person and not a hooligan' only slowed the girl momentarily. After finishing she bounced impatiently in her chair asking her Uncle if he had finished yet. Finally, taking pity on Cady, Hunk stood. He bent to give Saria a kiss, grab one more breakfast bar, and then held out his hand. As she tugged on his hand to make him move faster, he laughed and scooped her up and onto his shoulders. "Duck at the doorways, Cady-did-what. Saria, send me the list and I will take care of it." With a nod at the rest of the breakfasters, he strode into the hallway and toward the hospital.

"I just know he is going to wake up today, Uncle Hunk. Black told me, and he would know. Can we go faster, I really really want to see my Daddy."

"Patience, little princess. I do not think a minute will make a difference, but if I mow someone down in the hallway, it will make a delay. Remember, taking the extra minute to do a job correctly the first time, saves work down the road."

He could feel Cady rolling her eyes. "I _know_ Uncle Hunk."

Several minutes later, they approached the doors. "Down, please."

The pilot swung his young charge off his shoulders and she walked through the doors and made a beeline for her father's room. Normally, she would stop and chat with the staff and anyone waiting to see one of the medical personnel, but today she just waved to them and hurried though the waiting area and down the hall.

Hunk kept pace with her. They walked in the room to see Dr. Gorma sitting in a chair near the bed, a data pad in his hands. The doctor looked up as they entered. "Good morning, Catherine, Lieutenant."

"Did my Daddy wake up yet? Black said he would wake up today. Did he wake up?"

The doctor looked at her, surprised and then turned a questioning gaze toward the Lieutenant.

Hunk shrugged, "We had a discussion with Black last night. I told Cady we would come and speak with you this morning."

"Well," replied the doctor. "This is quite interesting." He looked between the girl and the man, weighing his next words. "Over the last 24 hours, and more specifically during the night, we have detected the rise of," he stopped and looked at Cady. "Yes, it looks like your Daddy will wake up today."

Cady smiled and went to climb on the bed to sit next to her father. She picked up his hand and interlaced her small fingers with his. "Good morning, Daddy. I am going to stay right here today. Black and the doctor said you will wake up today, 'cause I have lots and lots to tell you." Reaching her hand out, she patted his face and then looked back at the two men watching her. "Uncle Hunk?"

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Daddy is very, very prickly. Since he is going to wake up, can you shave him first?"

The pilot looked at the doctor who answered, "Catherine, I will ask one of the nurses to come and give him a shave. You are right, he will feel better when he wakes up clean shaven."

"Lieutenant, may I speak with you in the hallway? We will be right out the door, Catherine, should you need us."

She nodded and then turned back to her father, telling him about her visit with Black. The two men stepped out of the door and several steps down the hallway. "We started detecting signs of the Captain awakening the day before yesterday. Throughout the last 24 hours, his brain wave patterns indicate a rise toward consciousness. This morning, one of the nurses reported the Captain had briefly opened his eyes and focused on her. This occurred just over an hour ago. Based on the readings, I would expect the Captain to truly wake sometime today. Now will you please tell me of Catherine's encounter with Black."

The pilot nodded and turned to look momentarily at his Captain and niece. "You know she snuck away from Nanny last night and I found her in Black?" At the doctor's nod, he continued, "When I found her she told me Black needed to speak to her. She went to the repair bay because too many people occupied Keith's room. I assume this must have coincided with an increase in those patterns you mentioned?" Again, the doctor simply nodded, "Doctor, I do not pretend to know about magic or mystical energy or any of those traditions of Arus beyond what Saria or Allura has told me. I cannot see or measure it. It does not have a physical presence I can examine and take apart to see how it works. But over the last several weeks, I have watched Cady with Black. I have witnessed her knowing something before you, before any machine can measure an occurrence. She has reported something from Black regarding Keith and each time demonstrates knowledge she cannot or should not have. Each time something she has reported will happen, has come to pass. Obviously, there is something more here than I can understand." He held up his hands and looked at them for a moment. "For my entire life, machines have given up their secrets to me and whispered in my ear. Garrison took me to develop and improve on their machines. Yet for all my skill and all my knowledge, I cannot repair Black fully. I have spent as much time as possible working on his systems. Yet each time I believe his repair is complete, something else goes wrong. The rest of the crew no longer spends time on the lion; not because they do not wish to help, but because they have reached the limit on their abilities.

"In the last few weeks, I have come to believe the lions have some kind of connection with their pilots. It may sound crazy, but I think the wellbeing of the lions depends on the well being of their pilots. When we woke from the sedative you administered after Garrison finally arrived, the lions looked and functioned better than could be accounted for by the repairs which occurred while we slept. Over the 24 hours you grounded us, Darrell and I worked on the lions as well as dozens of others, and it seemed sometimes as though the lions preformed their own repairs. Perhaps you would call it healing or regeneration. In either case, I cannot account for how quickly we readied the lions for combat." He stopped and looked at the Doctor. "I know I am drifting far from the original question, but this has been brewing in my mind for some time now. Do you mind if I continue?"

The doctor studied the pilot for a moment. Of the five, the yellow pilot has always grounded the rest of the team. He believed in what he could touch, feel, and examine. Now, he echoed the doctors own thoughts and he wanted to know the conclusions the pilot had drawn. "Let's go to my office, Lieutenant. I will have one of the nurses sit with Catherine and the Captain and attend to his grooming. I do not expect any progress in the next 30 minutes."

Nodding, the pilot followed the doctor as he went down the hallway. Stopping one of the nurses, he relayed his requests before continuing to his office. The two men sat. The doctor pulled out a data pad, "Mind if I make notes?"

Hunk shook his head. At the doctor's gesture, he took a breath. "Let me go back a moment. I started thinking about all this as I worked on Black. We repaired the other lions and had them combat ready within two days of Garrison's and Vehicle Voltron's arrival. At first, I attributed the delay with readying Black to the sheer amount of damage he took. After all, Lotor gunned for Keith. For every fighter that came after the other four lions, two or three went after Black and Keith. Until you told us how Keith managed to keep himself functional, I did not question why Black never left the air. I guess none of us considered that we took breaks from fighting but we did not have another pilot to relieve our leader. Tunnel vision, I suppose.

"All the lions took more damage over the course of that battle than they have ever taken at one time since we came." He paused a moment and looked at the wall. "Let me correct that. They took more damage over a short amount of time without major overhaul and repair in anytime in the history of the lions and Voltron. All of the repairs were jury-rigged after a while; bypassing systems and bringing secondary or tertiary systems to the forefront. We pushed these machines so far past design specs we entered new territory. Darrell and I had no explanation why the lions could still function and why they did not seem to wear down as we had expected. Power supplies did not drain as anticipated, recharging took less time with the four lesser lions.

"I have looked over the logs. In the beginning, Black lost power at an incredibly slow rate. That increased over the first days of battle until power seemed to drain faster than normal. Expected, considering how much we put the lions through. Then the third day power levels picked up. The drain diminished considerably. It was as though Black had spent time recharging instead of battle. I know Keith and Black came in for about two hours, but that cannot account for the massive increase in available power and the drop in drain rate.

"Then Cady started talking with Black. In the beginning, I thought she used this as a coping mechanism. But then she started asking for things she should not know or understand. She made pronouncements regarding Keith's or Black's condition far beyond her age or understanding ability. Catherine is a very bright girl and she has received teaching and training like no other child could have, but she is still only seven years old. She still understands with a child's mind, a child's eyes, and a child's ability. The concepts she shared belong to an adult realm. So, as I worked I started thinking.

"If the lions have a consciousness or something like that which we cannot understand, then perhaps those who have an open mind can hear what they have to say. If the pilots connect to a person as Cady has suggested, perhaps the bond works two ways. As the pilot's condition deteriorates so does the lion. As the pilot's condition improves, so does the lion. If you extend the analogy, it makes perfect sense why the Green, Red, Yellow, and Blue lions energy did not drop as expected, they would have two pilots to help them. As the pilots started to flag, a new fresh, well fresher, pilot would take over giving the lions a boost as well.

"Then I looked at the correlation to Keith's condition and to his lion. As Keith's energy flagged, so did the lion's diminish. I checked the records. On the third day when he started that root and gained his second wind, so too did his lion. In that last battle, when Keith fell to unconsciousness, the lion made it back to the castle, but barely. I could detect nearly no energy readings or active systems. Again, at the time I attributed it to the massive damage the lion sustained. But as we tried to repair the lion, we would no sooner have one system up and running when another one would blow. When I agreed to place a bi-directional receiver in Keith's room, the crew noticed several systems come one line _which they had not yet repaired._ It did not make any sense unless they repaired a conduit or connection which had kept the systems from receiving power. Only the systems which restarted had no connection to the ones they were repairing.

"Finally, some of the comments Cady relayed indicated the lion was focused on keeping Keith close and not taking the final steps into the darkness quiet and eternal and therefore could not bother with repair of self. Which meant that any energy fed to the lion, he would have used to maintain the connection with Keith and to bring him closer to us." Hunk stopped and looked at the doctor. "Does any of this make sense, or am I projecting what I want, or am I just flat losing my mind?"

The doctor did not immediately reply, but made a few more notes into the computer. He laid the pad on his desk, interlaced his fingers together and looked at the pilot. "I do not believe you are going crazy, nor do I believe you are projecting. As you pointed out earlier, Arus has a history of magic and mysticism. I have experienced the touch of both myself. My family does not have a connection with magic, although I have known my share of those with the connection. It is a gift, a burden, and a blessing all at once. Those with the gift cannot connect to other people as easily as with Arus, so they have fewer close relationships. They tend to bond with a few people only and their bonds are for life.

"Zarkon and Haggar actively sought out those with the gift to capture them and use them for experiments and to see if they could either steal or replicate the ability to channel magic for their own purposes. I only tell you this, because I cannot consult with anyone now to give you a definitive answer to the question of the bond between pilot and lion. In the tradition of the lions, no such mention of a bond is made but that could be because you are the first non-Arusian pilots of Voltron. In the last few years, we have found basic knowledge missing because no one thought to record it anywhere. Much of it was considered common knowledge, and one does not write down common knowledge.

"If you could give me the records you examined, and your observations, I can add another pair of eyes to the questions. I believe you have it correct. With the new pilots, four of the lions would have two people to support them, but Black still only has the Captain. If their survival depends on their pilots, then it also makes sense Black would direct any energy possible to holding the connection with the Captain. I cannot explain the continued coma outside what Catherine has relayed though the black lion. Obviously, I can easily accept the lions having a personality and a consciousness. It explains much about their choice of pilot and the personalities of the pilots associated with each lion.

"In my experience, the Red Pilot has always had a passionate nature. Someone who lives life fully with no regrets and tries to experience everything possible. They live life on the edge, take risks, and often regard authority as a burden one must suffer.

"The Blue Pilot acts as the diplomat of the team. Often he acts as the peacemaker and the bond holding the entire team together. Like the water which gives the lion her home, the pilot easily adapts to changing situations and will find a way around a problem just as water finds a way around obstacles. The Blue Pilot often has depths not easily seen but felt. The pilot bonds deeply with those around him and feels the plights of strangers quickly and easily. He also will fight for the underdog and go to the aid of anyone who appears to need help without regard to self.

"The Yellow Pilot stands firm against all comers. Solid, dependable, and the confidant of the team. The pilot supports team members and keeps their secrets to himself. The pilot often sits in the background, quiet and observing. Most have a keen intelligence which only those close to them recognize.

"The Green Pilot, traditionally has either had the greatest age of all the pilots or lived the fewest years but with a wealth of experience packed into those few years. Like the lion, the pilot often uses agility and strength of mind rather than strength of body to accomplish a task. The strong man can easily move the boulder; the pilot would find a lever and friends. The Green Pilot often has an abundance of energy and identifies with nature. Like nature herself, the Green Pilot changes the face he presents to the world based on the people surrounding him at the moment.

"Which leaves the Black Lion. Unlike the other lions and their pilots, Black has chosen a wide range of people from both genders of all ages and experiences. The personalities of the pilots have ranged across the spectrum. Oral tradition says Voltron himself changes as the pilot of Black does. Only the strong sense of honor, duty, and an inner core of strength link the pilots of the Black Lion. Many have given their lives in the defense of Arus. King Alfor piloted the Black for a time, but soon switched to the Green. He had more interest in preparing the planet for what would come to pass. The princess' mother piloted Black and under her leadership found Voltron as powerful as any time in history until now. I could tell stories of her majesty, but that will wait for another time.

"Yes, Lieutenant, I believe in what you say. Can we prove the theory? Perhaps. We will have to discuss that at a later date. Now then, Yellow Pilot, can I help you further?"

Hunk sat back in the chair and stared unseeing over the doctor's head for several minutes. Dr. Gorma waited patiently for the Lieutenant to work through what he had iterated. Focusing back on the doctor, the man offered a small shrug, "As you say, we will have to test the theory later. Thank you, doctor, for putting my mind at ease." He stood, scraping the chair back against the floor, "I should return to Cady. Much will happen today, if Black foretells correct, and I do not feel right she face it alone."

The doctor nodded and also stood. Without another word, the two men returned to the vigil at the side of the newest Hero of Arus.

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As the morning progressed, the Captain continued to show signs of waking; twitching muscles and rapid eye movements. The entire hospital staff found excuse after excuse to visit the doctor; paperwork needing his approval, minor problems usually handled by one of the senior nurses, consultations on routine care, and report after report hand delivered rather than sent to the doctor's data pad.

Hunk spoke with Saria and with Magda clearing both his schedule and anything requiring Cady. Since the doctor did not want rumors spreading, he said nothing other than the doctor would like Cady to remain with her father for a while longer and Hunk would remain to supervise. Although her Uncle suggested several walks, Cady refused to leave her father's side. Black had stated her father would wake this day, and Cady would not miss it for the world. She ate the lunch put before her without taking her eyes off her father. Even necessary breaks she accomplished as quickly as possible.

The wait continued.

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	20. The answer is

Many thanks to Trek and Wade Wells for the beta. It is great to have another pair of eyes to catch errors!

This is for all those who continue to follow the story, ask for updates, and have such great patience with me. The rough draft of the final two chapters and the epilogue wait now only my editing and the betas. The school year has ended. The schedule has calmed down. _Supposedly_, I will have more time to finish this.

The last two sections (beginning with 'Hunk let the whooping noise. . .') came about solely at the request of Wade Wells. Many thanks to her for the missing piece.

Please, enjoy!

Oh, for anyone who cares to look, my husband has added new pictures on his astronomy site. The address is in my profile.

--KM

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Late afternoon found five communication units beeping with an urgent message to come to the hospital. Three of the five left conversations unfinished and instructions untold as they answered the summons. One finished cutting a wire, then uncharacteristically left a mess on the floor. The last one paused to send a prayer to the Goddess and God Above before hurrying as bidden.

They met in the entry way of the hospital, the last to arrive only a minute behind the first. A waiting nurse smiled broadly, "Dr. Gorma has requested your presence in the Captain's room. If you would follow me?"

Walking quickly down the hallway, the group did not speak. As they approached their destination, Cady's voice drifted down the hallway, sounding more animated than anyone had heard for some time. As she paused, Hunk's voice sounded in laughter along with Dr. Gorma's quiet chuckle and a third rough sounding laugh.

A gasp from the group had the nurse turning around and holding out her arms to prevent all five from flooding the room. She looked quickly over her shoulder and hissed at them to stop, with a finger to her lips. "Just a moment, _please!" _The five people stopped, grudgingly. The nurse continued, "He woke just ten minutes ago, and recognized Cady. Be gentle when you enter the room, his body has woken, but it will take time for the rest of him to catch up. Dr. Gorma will talk to you after your SHORT visit! If you cannot keep calm, keep the visit SHORT, we WILL ban you from visiting on anything other than an authorized schedule and with authorized staff. Am I clear?"

Five startled faces looked at one another and then back at the fierce nurse.

"Understood, Nurse. We will comply."

The nurse nodded and then smiled brightly, "Go on in then. Remember, he does not know how long he lay in a coma. To him it has only been a short time since the last battle." Stepping aside, she let the five people closest to the Captain enter his room. A chorus of greetings sounded as she returned down the hallway to check on her other patients.

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Hunk, Cady, and Dr. Gorma looked over as the five people trooped into the room, with their greetings. The doctor stepped back to allow them to approach the captain. He knew the nurse would have relayed his instructions and warnings. "Take a break, when the grunt work needs doing!" Lance could not stop smiling broadly at his best friend and commander awake at long last.

"It's a new training method relayed to me by Garrison. Drop out of sight and see how your team does with no communications and no orders," came the dry reply.

The laughter in the room had little to do with the repartee. The group needed to give voice to the emotions bombarding them, and laughing too heartily at a dumb joke helped.

Cady laughed with a slightly confused look on her face. She opened her mouth to ask the question, but stopped when her Uncle Hunk shook his head slightly. He would explain it to her later.

Allura kept herself composed, although she wanted nothing more than to throw herself on Keith and never let him go again. Instead, she studied him. Someone had given him a shave, clearing away the stubble which had accumulated. His face, although gaunt, held animation in it for the first time since the fight with the RoBeast. It had acquired the pallor of someone who had not seen the outside in a few weeks. Knowing Keith detested hospital gowns, someone had kindly dressed him in a wrap around shirt to allow access to his wounds. A small blanket covered his legs, but Allura suspected he wore matching loose fitting pants. Cady held tight to his right hand, while his left rested on a specially designed support to keep any strain off of his shoulder. His hands looked as though they belonged on a man fifty years Keith's senior. The knuckles stood out prominently. Allura hoped as he regained weight, this sign of his sacrifice would lessen. In all, he looked…diminished. Even his eyes held something not present before Lotor's attack. Perhaps because of the medications? Inside she shook her head, no. Perhaps only because he had just awakened, and when he healed, his eyes would go back to normal.

The group continued to keep conversation light, spending more time chatting amongst themselves as time passed. After only twenty minutes, it became obvious to everyone that Keith struggled to follow the banter. His eyes started closing in long blinks. One by one, they each made excuses to leave until only the doctor, Cady, and Hunk remained.

"Rest, Captain. Let yourself sleep."

"Been sleeping, awhile, I suspect," came the slurred response.

"True, but you will need more, yet."

"Go to sleep, Daddy." Cady reached to pat his face gently, running her fingers down his forehead and nose, as he would do when she fought sleep.

The captain found his eyes closing, against his will and he drifted into slumber with the feel of his daughter beside him and the sound of an Arusian lullaby in his ears.

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A short time later, Hunk walked into the small conference room with the doctor right behind him. The group could hear him giving some instructions to another member of the medical staff. "One of the nurses agreed to walk Cady to the crèche. She did not sleep much last night, and spent the day here waiting for her father to wake," the doctor explained as he walked into the room and sat. He took a quick look at the room around him. Lance sat with a huge grin on his face. Coran looked much the same, but some tension had gone from his body. The young green pilot looked dazed. Magda held one of the princess' hands, gently petting it repeatedly in a soothing motion. Allura looked shell shocked, relieved, and joyful by turns. The doctor made a note to have Magda slip something soothing into her next drink.

Of the group, only Hunk seemed himself. Perhaps because he had come to believe in what Cady told him. Perhaps because of his relationship with Saria, Whatever the reason, Mikko knew the yellow pilot would quietly stand as their pillar of strength now, when really needed. His lion had chosen well.

Clearing his throat, he brought his thoughts to order. "Yes, it is perfectly normal for someone waking from an extended coma to have only brief periods of wakefulness at the beginning. I would expect it will take several days for his body to adjust. Today will see the briefest waking periods. Taking into account the Captain's will and connection to his lion, I believe within two days he will have long periods of wakefulness. In the next few weeks, we will focus on weight gain and building muscle. It will take some time to find the right balance of nutrients and calories to let both happen.

"As you all know, this type of severe muscle atrophy takes months to rebuild. In the meantime, I expect some muscle spasms due to muscle fatigue. During the last few weeks, I have regularly given him muscle relaxants after the physical therapy sessions because of this very reason. The therapists must carefully monitor how much stress they put on the Captain's muscles as it changes from day to day and session to session.

"Knowing the Captain so well, I shall endeavor to release him as soon as possible. The conditions for this will be the following: One. He must gain enough weight to put him at 85 percent of a standard weight for his height or around 150 to 160 pounds. Two. He must be able to walk unaided. Three. He must regain sufficient mobility in his shoulder and hand to take care of everyday tasks, although the definition of this is subject to change." The doctor paused and looked around the room. "We will have to be very careful to not let the Captain overtax himself either physically or mentally. I realize he will want to have all the information since his last day of battle and will also want to return to duty quickly. I will allow duties involving planning or communications; those tasks which require mental exercise not physical." Pausing, he looked around the room, "Any questions I can answer?"

"Any restrictions on visiting?"

"No. However, during the next several weeks, he will still require much sleep. Come down whenever you can, but check in with the nurses before popping into the Captain's room."

"Will he fly again?"

The room held a collective breath, waiting for the doctor's answer. The man took little for himself, asked little for himself; except flying. In the beginning, before losing Sven and before training enough people to take shifts, the men had taken shifts in the control room to monitor the planet and watch for incoming attacks. Lance suspected the reason Keith took so many night patrols had little to do with sparing the rest of the team. His friend ran perpetually short on sleep, but the night flights rejuvenated him. Lance could not count the times when Keith had taken Black out on patrol, sometimes nearly staggering with fatigue. He had always maintained the rest of the team needed their sleep more. Hunk and Darrell could not safely repair and rebuild castle systems with fatigue dragging at them. When Lance had protested about their _commander_ needing sharp mental faculties, Keith had merely smiled and went out anyway. After the third or fourth time, Lance stopped protesting. Their captain would do as he would.

Then he started paying attention. Though Keith would leave nearly staggering, when he returned, he always brought an aura of calm and centeredness with him. Depending on the time, he would either take a quick meal before practice, or sleep for a couple hours. It made no sense to Lance that an activity which required focus and concentration rejuvenated the captain. He would never forget his captain's reply when he finally asked.

Keith had studied him for several minutes before replying. "When Black and I fly at night, I can see the world and its possibilities. In the silence, the true silence of night, with no one near, I can let go of everything but the feeling of flying. For a time, no one needs me, no one makes demands of me, no one expects me to find answers to impossible quandaries. My mind can lay quiet." He then gave Lance a wry smile. "Curiosity satisfied, Lieutenant?"

Lance returned the smile and then saluted, "Sir, yes, Sir!"

Snorting, Keith glanced at the time. "Practice in two hours. I will have a shower and nap before then. Beep me if anything arises."

Nodding, Lance turned back to the control panel in front of him.

Shaking his head, Lance brought his attention back to the doctor to catch his reply.

". . .cannot say at this time. I think it safe to say the Captain will let very little stand in his way of flying. The truer question posed: will the captain fly combat again? With the help of the Goddess and God Above, yes. This recovery will take many months. Just returning Captain Kogane to quote, "normal," standards would challenge anyone. That is neither here nor there. Little of what I say here today may pertain to tomorrow. I would rather not speculate on the future, but deal with the present. Can I answer any other questions?"

"How are you going to keep Keith to a slower recovery? Tie him to the bed?"

"Lance! Only you would think of that!"

The red pilot only smirked, "Hey, if you need to keep a good man down. . ." He laughed and ducked as several objects came flying at him from various parts of the room.

The doctor only smiled. Typical of the new Captain; finding a way to let the tension out of a room. It surprised the doctor, yet again, the depths to the pilot. Captain McClain, although a brash playboy and ready to thumb his nose at authority, had an innate understanding of people which led to the same maids with whom he romped, to cry on his shoulder or look to him for consolation. Cliché, but in his case true. The brash exterior hid a heart filled with good intentions and caring.

While the younger people joked, the doctor exchanged a knowing look with the older two in the room. As both nodded, he rose. "As there seems to be nothing else I can answer?" Heads shook. "Coran, Magda, if I could have a few minutes?"

"Of course, Doctor."

"My office?"

Both nodded and the three turned and left the room. As they exited, a jubilant whooping started. Coran suspected a rather large party would soon commence. He made a mental note to have the beta team take over for the group in the morning. Somehow, he suspected all of them would rise feeling rather worse for wear. He chuckled to himself at the thought. Ten years ago, he would have joined them. Perhaps he should stop in for a while; yes, yes he would. Time to remind himself what relaxing with the youth felt like.

"I think many will hold celebrations tonight as the news of the young commander spreads." Magda mused.

Both men nodded, then stood to let her enter the room first. They settled into the chairs and Mikko opened a drawer with a smile, holding out a bottle. "Perhaps we should preempt the celebration, then?"

Gaping at the bottle, Coran could only nod his head. "Ethusian elixir. Did someone start making it again, and when?"

Gorma laughed and poured a small amount into three glasses designed specifically for the drink. "Yes, but this came from a friend of mine who stored a cache of the stuff before the first of Zarkon's attacks. He has spent the last year trying to remember where. Finally, I had Zima put him under a memory trance. He repaid me by giving me two bottles." He held up his glass, "To Commander Keith, may his recovery be swift and may Arus follow suit."

"To Commander Keith," the other two replied in tandem.

Three people tossed back their glasses and slammed them back on the table as custom. A few moments later, all three gasped as the liquor hit. "Ahh, I had forgotten the punch it holds!" Magda smiled and then hiccupped. All three laughed, and the doctor carefully poured out one more before regretfully replacing the stopper and placing the bottle back in the drawer.

"To business?" At the nods of acceptance he continued. "The lore masters report the vote goes well, and early results yield the expected and desired outcome. Final results will come this week. We can expect an announcement shortly thereafter."

Coran smiled and nodded. Magda beamed. "Then I have some planning to do. Much to be done in a short amount of time."

"Has anything leaked?" the diplomat questioned.

Gorma shook his head. "No, many beaming faces, but for once the gossip tree has failed to keep pace. I think, for once, tradition has trumped the gossip mongers' need to spread tales."

Coran raised his glass, "To tradition!"

Following suit the other two replied, "The lore masters!"

Gasping quickly following the slamming of the glasses on the table.

The three talked about old friends and new plans. Twenty minutes later, Magda and Coran took their leave. The doctor smiled as they walked with careful dignity down the hall. It just would not do to see the castellaine and the head diplomat to weave through the corridors tipsily. He smiled and then tipped his chair back, happy to not have to move for a couple house. With a command to leave him undisturbed, Mikko turned off the lights and settled in for a long nap. Today had been good.

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Hunk let the noise of the whooping and crying from his teammates wash over him. Outwardly, he made appropriate noises. Inwardly, he thought again of the moment when Keith's eyes had finally opened.

Several times throughout the morning, Keith rose toward consciousness only to fall back to a dreaming state before the actual moment of wakening. The doctor had explained to Cady and to Hunk about the various stages of sleep. It had amused Hunk enormously to see the doctor try to bring medical speak down to Cady's level without insulting her intelligence. Not surprisingly, he managed beautifully. When the yellow pilot had inquired about the ability, the doctor had simply laughed. "I have three children, Lieutenant. Although they have grown and I may be a little rusty, I still remember how to talk to children about complex medical issues. Probably why none of my children followed me into medicine!" He had smiled, inviting the pilot to join in his mirth.

As the morning continued, the pilot and the doctor swapped stories about growing up on their respective planets. Hunk shared stories about his unconventionally large family and the doctor described the planet before Zarkon attacked. He told many stories about his children and his wife. Only one of his children, one grandchild, and his wife survived the ensuing horrors. His other children, their spouses and children perished. It amazed Hunk how the people of Arus kept their joy of life and celebrated the life of those lost to Zarkon rather than despairing their loss. It did not lessen their grief or their anger; rather it granted their loved ones a way to remain beyond their deaths through memory and remembrance.

Nurses came in a continuous stream throughout the day. The doctor had chosen to remain until the Captain woke, but other patients still needed his tending. The nurses and other medical staff came with charts, questions, and problems. Dr. Gorma quickly and efficiently solved each problem. Only four times did he leave to check on another patient.

Midday came. Hunk grew more anxious with each time Keith rose toward consciousness only to slip away without waking. He stopped jumping every time Cady reported a change in the monitors or his limbs twitching. Then, at 2.23pm, Cady announced, "He is waking up, for real!"

Dr. Gorma and Hunk quickly stood and walked the few steps to the bed. As they watched, the captain's eyes twitched, and they could see him trying to open his eyes. Cady sat on his right side with his good hand in her lap. "C'mon, Daddy! Open your eyes. You can do it."

With Cady's encouragement, Keith finally opened his eyes. He blinked heavily several times to focus on the little girl next to him. His hand turned over to take his daughter's and his head turned to look directly at her.

She beamed with happiness, "Hullo, Daddy. I love you."

Keith blinked several more times and he opened his mouth, but only a croaking sound emerged. With ease of long practice, Cady reached for the glass of weak tea next to her. The nurses had replaced the glass with a fresh one through out the day, covered with a lid and a straw poking through the top.

"When you are ready, Daddy, I have the tea for the yucky mouth."

Blinking a few more times, the Captain finally turned his head and took a small sip. He swished it around his mouth and swallowed before taking a second sip. Cady put the glass back on the table. Hunk felt his eyes well up at the picture before him. Keith's child had never once doubted her father would return. She believed with a child's ability to look beyond what their eyes told them.

The doctor had informed them that when Keith finally woke, it could take a few minutes for his mind to catch up to his body. In typical Cady fashion, she simply began talking.

"So Black told me you would wake up today and it took you _forever_! The nurses even brought me lunch today and afterward Uncle Hunk told me I ate Ruba Roots! Yuck, I do not like Ruba Roots. Of course, I just wanted to eat really really fast, cause I did not want to miss you opening your eyes. You have been sleeping a really long time, Daddy. Black said you will still feel tired for a long time, and that I have to be patient before we can go flying again, but I bet Uncle Darrell will find a way for us to going flying sooner." Cady continued to talk to her Dad and after several minutes, the doctor walked to check Keith's responses. As he flashed a light in the Captain's eyes, checked his arm and hand, Keith focused on Cady.

When the doctor had finished his exam, he picked up a data pad and sent the message which had waited all morning.

". . .and then Dara slipped and fell into the horse poop!" Cady giggled, and her dad let out a rusty chuckle.

"Did Nanny have a fit?"

"Well. . ."

Hunk jumped into the conversation, "Tell the truth Cady-did-what!"

"Um, well she did call Uncle Hunk and told him I was not to come back the rest of the day."

As Keith smiled, Cady continued her rambling.

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Looking around the table at his companions, Hunk felt the sudden need to find Saria. This morning a miracle occurred and he just wanted to bask in her love for a few minutes. Abruptly standing, he headed for the door waving at the room, "Well, I had best go tell Saria. She left standing orders to be told _immediately_ if anything changed with the Captain!"

"Hen-pecked already!" came the reply from the red pilot.

"Smart men always try to fulfill the simple wishes of those they love!" Allura glared at Lance. "Which is how they KEEP them!"

The green pilot, opened his mouth, looked at the princess and closed it again.

"At least, Lance-who-cannot-keep-a-girl-more-than-two-months, I have a hen who can do the pecking!"

Allura and Darrell just laughed at the consternation on Lance's face. Taking the victory, Hunk quickly left the room. He heard Darrell's voice and more laughter as the door closed behind him. Touching his com unit, he smiled as Saria quickly appeared on the screen. "Good news, love. . ."

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	21. Proclamation

Once again, my most humble thanks to Wade Wells for a most excellent Beta!

Many thanks you all of you who have left review and kept me encouraged and motivated. I blame you entirely for the fact a new story popped in my head and will have to write it! 

Warning: You will find strong swear words within this chapter.

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Keith shifted his arm a bit, as it started feeling numb. Cady had fallen asleep while reading to him and, selfishly, he wanted to cuddle with his little girl. He started dozing himself when a throat clearing next to him had his eyes opening. "Good day, Coran. What brings you here?"

Coran smiled at the sound of Keith's voice. It sounded stronger every day. The doctor had even started making noises about letting the captain return to his rooms. In the three weeks since he had woken from the coma, Keith had made great strides in his recovery. Just two days prior, the captain had reached the first goal weight of 155 pounds, which meant Gorma would remove the TPN. He still looked too thin, but improved daily. Coran never wanted to see another person in the captain's condition six weeks prior.

The doctor believed in another day or two the captain would not need round the clock nursing care. Dr. Gorma had attached a big 'however' attached to that statement: Keith would have no clearance for active duty and would spend his days in the various physical therapies required to rebuild his body. It would take many months for him to regain all he had lost. Nanny's cooking would go a long way toward recovery, as would leaving the hospital.

Throwing off those thoughts, Coran smiled at Keith. "A delegation from the ruling council has come requesting an audience with you. Would you be willing to see them?"

Keith nodded, "Of course Coran, would you ask them to wait in the nearest conference room and advise them I will join the as quickly as possible?"

Nodding, the advisor walked to the doorway and paused, "You look much better and sound good."

"Thank Dr. Gorma for taking such good care of me." Keith returned mildly.

Coran paused, as if searching for the right words, unusual for him. "Gorma credits your unwillingness to accept defeat in any form for your recovery. The rest of the medical staff concurs." He paused again, "What you have done for Arus will pass from generation to generation inspiring its people for all time. Truly I say to you, no words exist which will ever fully encompass the whole of what you have done." He turned and gave Keith a full bow, one of acknowledgment and in accordance with tradition when acknowledging a leader. Coran rose, and turned before Keith could give any response.

Bemused, he pushed the button to summon a nurse. His arm was throbbing and he could feel the muscles starting to twitch. Meegan came just as a grimace passed over his face. "Here now Captain, you should have called me before," she said softly as she carefully lifted the sleeping child and transferred her to the cot nearby.

He shrugged and gasped as his arm seized violently. Quickly, Meegan grabbed his wrist with her left hand. With her right she grabbed an injection and between seizures injected the relaxant directly into the trouble causing muscle. Within a minute, Keith's arm had quieted and he could unclench his teeth. "Thank you, Meegan."He reached over with his right hand to rub at his left.

"Of course, Captain. You need to be a little more careful. It will take some time for those muscles to recover completely. As long as I am here, give me your left hand."

Keith stopped massaging his arm, and presented his hand for her inspection. She tested his involuntary reflexes and nodded. "Better and better. Now make a fist." Keith complied, although his hand did not quite close together. "Ah, much better. You are well on the way, Captain." She could not help but think how much he had improved in just the last two weeks ago. At the last meeting of the Captain's nurses, Peder and Bekka had told the story of his first real shower.

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"Captain. Captain, are you awake?"

The gentle voice pulled him from a deep sleep toward the surface. He tried to respond, but only a croak emerged from his throat.

"I have a drink for you Captain, if you can just open your eyes for me?"

Keith did not really want to wake. He had been enjoying the restful dark, but he could not stay there for long. Slowly he opened his eyes and quickly closed them. "S' bright."

"Just a moment, I will dim them." There was a short pause, "There captain, try again," the voice urged.

Opening his eyes again, he blinked to focus in the dimmed room. His tongue felt large and clumsy, his head very muzzy.

A shape leaned over the bed and a young pretty face came in view. She looked vaguely familiar, but Keith could not quite place her.

"Ahh, there you are Captain. I am going to slowly put the bed in a sitting position, just let the bed do the work." The bed and its slightly confused patient came to a seated position. The woman held out a glass with a straw toward the captain, "Take a few sips, Captain, this will help clear your mouth and your head."

He reached with his hand, surprised to see it shaking. The young woman let him take the glass, but kept her hand on the bottom to steady it. He took a long drink, letting it roll in his mouth and down his parched throat. Suddenly, his arm started to spasm, and the nurse kept hold of the glass to keep it from falling. She quickly set the glass aside, and took his arm between her hands. Keith clenched his teeth together to keep from crying out as she gently worked the muscle to stop the spasm. "Easy, Captain, just try to relax, I know that it is hard. Just breath, the spasm will pass. Breath Captain."

The pain had cleared his head and he recognized the woman as one of the nurses who rotated in and out of his room. Three different nurses rotated through his room after he had awoken a week past. They alternately bullied and cajoled him. As the spasm passed, Keith unclenched his jaw, and worked it slightly to remove the kinks. It felt sore from all the clenching he had done since waking. He sighed and leaned back against the pillows. The nurse again picked up the drink and handed it to him. Hand still shaking, he managed to finish the drink with the woman's help and then let his arm fall slack as she put the empty glass aside.

"All right then, Captain, I am sure you want a shower. I will help you to the shower area, then Peder will help you as you need. So first thing first, let me take out the IV line for now." Chatting pleasantly, she removed the line and looped it around the stand to reinsert when they returned.

Keith allowed the talk to filter above his head. The drink had cleared out his mouth, and he felt more alert. Meegan. That was the woman's name. Finally! His thoughts started coming together. Meegan lowered the bed to a lever where Keith could place his feet on the floor and stand. Thoughtfully, she had provided a pair of slippers with traction. Carefully, the man swung his legs over the side of the bed. Meegan stood beside him, but let him stand on his own. He wobbled slightly, but caught his balance with his right hand on the bed. Straightening slowly, he nodded at Meegan. His broken foot had knitted nicely during the coma, and only throbbed slightly. On the other hand, he felt like a wet noodle, and at each step his legs wobbled.

Concentrating on placing one foot in front of the other, he heard but did not listen to Meegan's encouragement. She did not offer to help him, but walked slowly, her shoulder available as needed. The short walk down the hallway tired him more than he wanted to admit or like. Holding the door opened, she said something else, but Keith did not pay any attention. His head buzzed as though he were drunk, and his legs threatened to give out on him. Just as they did so, a strong arm caught his arm, and threw it over broad shoulders, keeping him upright.

"Easy there Captain, I cannot have you ruining my reputation by falling over before you have had a chance to enjoy your shower." Keith looked up at bright green eyes, which smiled easily. "No need to talk, my wife will tell you I do enough for three people." He skillfully helped Keith over to a seat on a bench. "Now sit there for just a minute, and I will start the shower. A little bird told me you like it on the scalding end, but we can work up to that."

Keith just leaned his head back against the cool tile and closed his eyes. He had never in his life felt so weak. If he had any energy left he would scream in frustration. His mind wandered at odd moments, and he had the tendency to drop off to sleep in the middle of a sentence. Gorma assured him it was his body's way of healing, but it had been a effing week! In four years, he had never, after a week, still needed a babysitter to do the most simple of tasks.

Just as he started a good ranting in his mind, Peder returned. Ok, Captain, if you would just follow me?" He offered neither hand nor arm to help, for which the captain felt extremely grateful. Placing a hand on either side of the bench, he pushed himself up to a standing position. He carefully pulled at the loose ties on the dreaded hospital gown, and carefully handed it to Peder with a shaking hand. Damn! Would the shaking never cease? Gorma had told him how much damage his body had taken, but he would like to do one effing task without his body betraying him.

Peder walked beside the captain, seeing the disgust in his eyes as he handed the gown with a shaking hand to him. He kept up a stream of small talk, nothing of import. He could only imagine how the captain felt about the temporary dependence he had on people for the simplest of tasks. It must be rather frustrating to have someone wait while you attended to basic bodily functions. Peder told Keith he would be back, he just had to grab some extra towels, and if he needed help just to call.

The young nurse left before Keith could say a word. The captain knew Peder was trying to spare his dignity, but after this last week, he did not know that he had any left. He attended to business; at least it was better than that damn catheter and then carefully walked toward the shower. It was only a half dozen steps, but it seemed like ten miles. As he lowered himself to the bench in the shower stream, he leaned back against the heated tile and sighed. Nothing compared to a steaming hot shower. After a minute he opened his eyes, the young nurse was folding towels, and giving Keith at least the illusion of privacy. He smiled, a real smile, at the courtesy.

"Peder?"

"Yes Captain?"

"Could I trouble you to turn the heat up just a bit? I could use a little more warmth." The controls were just beyond his reach on the bench, and he just did not feel like standing at the moment. "Of course captain. If you can lean forward just a bit, I can also turn on the jets behind you."

Keith simply nodded, then sighed as the blast of hot water hit him at the knots in his neck. He sat there for some minutes, just enjoying the quiet.

Thirty minutes later, Keith felt nearly human again. It was amazing the difference a good shower, a shave, and real clothes could make. Granted they were yoga pants and a loose shirt, but he would take anything other than that effing gown. Peder helped him back to his room. Keith's intentions of doing anything other than resting disappeared somewhere along the short walk back. He climbed back into his bed and fell asleep before Peder had reattached his TPN.

For his part, Peder carefully reattached the monitors to the captain. Other than an occasional muscle twitch, he did not stir. He had made amazing inroads on his recovery, and his strong will certainly helped. The nurse quietly finished his chores, and dimmed the lights behind him.

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Mentally giving herself a little kick, Meegan turned her attention back to her patient. "You have made great strides in the last few weeks."

He smiled, albeit a little bitterly. "Coran said the ruling council wanted to see me?"

Meegan nodded. "Cady will be fine right here. We will poke our heads in on her while you see the council. Do you need anything before you go?"

Keith shook his head, "Perhaps something to drink?"

"Dorella will have already brought something in to the room for you. Mind you, it does you no good in the glass, Captain, DRINK IT!"

"Yes ma'am," he replied with a salute. Rising and taking the three steps to the cot, he gave his sleeping daughter a quiet kiss on her head and slowly walked to the conference room. When he entered, every counselor stood by their chairs and talk quieted to a minimum. Keith's eyebrow went up in surprise; this was new. He made his way to a chair obviously left for him, and sat. Inwardly grimacing, he saw the glass of green goop as he had begun calling it. He had found he could not eat large quantities of food and the nutritionist had concocted this drink. Although it did not taste bad, neither did it taste good, and the texture, blech, like curdled milk or creamy cement. Still, he agreed to drink it. At least Dorella had left juice to chase away the taste. Suddenly, he realized the counselors still stood. He gestured toward the seats, "Please do not stand on formality, ladies and gentlemen." While the five men and women sat, he swallowed some of the goop, followed with a swig of juice.

Tisha, a long time counselor spoke, "I have been asked to speak on behalf of this counsel, Commander. We have brought a proclamation, ratified by the people for your consideration. I wish you to know it received a 97% approval rating, the highest ever recorded. If I may?"

Keith nodded, his curiosity aroused, "Yes, please."

Tisha stood and unrolled a paper scroll. She noticed Keith's quirk of amusement, "Tradition, Commander." She cleared her throat and began reading,

"We the people of Arus, in accordance with tradition, and having voted on the matter do declare thusly:

"In so far as Keith Kogane, called Lieutenant Colonel by his own people, named, Pilot of Black Lion, sworn as defender of Arus, named Commander of the defenders of the planet, has given of himself to save our people, our way of life, and our planet do so name him Hero.

"To this end, his name will we inscribe within our hearts and within the Hall of Heroes to become the 163rd name inscribed therein. His name will now end the recitation of Heroes and his tales of valor and glory will add to the lore of Heroes.

"We petition said Hero, Keith Kogane, on the following matter:

"We, the people of Arus, in accordance with ancient tradition handed down from one lore master to the next, having kept the Heroes litany from the first to the last,

"We ask you to remain on Arus and to take to wife one Allura Joyeux of House Arella, heir to the throne and named Princess Elect. Her hand is ours to bestow on a declared Hero.

"Thus we set the petition before you, as sealed by the people."

Tisha rolled the scroll and lay it before Keith on the table. As if on an unheard signal, all five counselors rose and bowed before Keith. Without another word, they filed out of the room, leaving behind the scroll, and one very stunned and confused man.

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"The ruling council requests your presence, your highness."

Looking up, Allura focused on Ialla standing in the doorway, a broad smile on her face. "The ruling council, why?"

"They did not say, highness, only that your presence is needed." True, although Ialla _did_ know what they would tell the princess. It took all of her control not to dance and sing and blurt the news to the her boss. Somehow, she had managed to keep Princess Allura from learning about the Lore Master's vote. It had taken some very creative juggling of correspondence sent to the princess, but tradition dictated she have no say in the matter. When the voting had commenced, the castle personnel had quickly placed theirs. Like many other regions of Arus and towns, not one person had cast a negative vote. For years, the staff had watched the princess and their beloved Captain. No one could count the number of times the Captain had saved someone while risking his own life and limb. Once Dr. Gorma swore he needed to install a revolving door at the hospital just for Captain Kogane and his multitude of visits. He treated the staff with respect and made no demands on any one of them.

The staff had watched the princess blossom under his tutelage. In the beginning, no one doubted the princess felt only puppy love for the commander of Voltron. He and his team had swooped down during Arus' darkest hours and brought hope back to the people. No one could blame the princess for her starry-eyed affection. When Ialla first came, the princess still carried a crush for the Captain. Then it changed.

As time passed, the puppy love transformed into something deeper and lasting. Ialla could not pinpoint the time, but the princess had fallen deeply in love with her Captain. In return, the Captain had given the princess the family she desperately craved. The first time Cady had come to the princess to conspire with her to force her father into taking a break, Ialla thought her heart would break. The little girl looked to the princess as a mother figure. It had become the castle story of the week. The tragic, doomed love of the princess for her knight. Gossip had the two wedded within months of the arrival of the force. Months and then years passed. The princess refused to look elsewhere for her mate, and it seemed the Captain did not feel worthy.

With the Lore Masters' declaration, the tragedy would turn into triumph as love conquered all. The princess and her captain would bond and all of Arus would prosper.

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Allura shook her head, trying to think of what the royal council could possibly want. With a sigh she rose and looked at the casual pant suit she wore. Ialla noticed the look, "Magda waits for you in your chambers with a more appropriate attire."

"Thank you Ialla. I shall return as soon as possible." She stepped through the doorway and soon arrived at her rooms. Magda had already laid out a dress. With practiced efficiency, Allura quickly stripped off her clothes and stepped into the waiting dress Magda held. Raising the hem, she stepped into the slippers then sat in front of her dresser where Nanny quickly dressed her hair, pulling a portion to the back, tied into a quick knot and the remainder left to fall freely. Using a hot iron, Magda curled the ends of Allura's hair into large ringlets, then combed them out to give her hair a wavy appearance. Through the procedure, the two spoke casually. Magda gave her an update on repairs to the ballroom, and some staffing issues. Allura asked several questions about other repairs and offered the latest information on the search for Lotor. In less than fifteen minutes, the princess exited the room and headed toward the formal conference room.

As she entered, quiet conversations ceased, and the council rose. Allura took her seat at the head of the table and nodded for the council to sit; only Counselor Tisha remained standing.

"You may proceed."

Tisha offered a small bow, "Thank you, your highness." She stood tall and smiled at the princess. "Gallead, the first inscribed Hero took to wife Marian thus beginning the tradition of the Lore Masters. Today, we come to inform you a vote has declared a new Hero. In accordance with tradition and the dictates of the Lore Masters, who keep the list of the Heroes from the first to the last, they have granted your hand to the Hero.

"The Lore Masters have declared Kogane, called Lieutenant Colonel by his own people, named, Pilot of Black Lion, sworn as defender of Arus, named Commander of the defenders of the planet, as the 163rd Hero of Arus. We have just now come from informing him.

"Therefore, we, as representatives of the Lore Masters, do hereby command you to present yourself to him 24 hours from now to hear his decision. We further command you to present yourself in your wedding attire. Should he have reached no decision, you will withdraw for a further three days before presenting yourself a second time. If the Hero has no decision, we shall consider it a refusal.

"You will no go and prepare yourself for the Hero's decision."

Allura felt grateful she did not fall out of the chair at the Counselors declaration. For a full minute after Tisha finished speaking, she could do nothing but wonder if she dreamed again. Keith, a Hero and more than that, granted _her_ hand. Pushing aside all other thought, Allura stood and bowed to the council, hoping her voice would remain steady.

"I, Allura Joyeux of House Arella, heir to the throne and named Princess Elect hear the commands of you, the representative of the Lore Masters and submit myself to your authority. As bidden, I shall prepare myself for the Hero and present myself to him in 24 hours time. Should no answer be forthcoming, I shall retire for three additional days before presenting myself to him a second time. Should no answer be forthcoming or the Hero replies in the negative, I will bind myself to one of the Lore Masters' choosing." Allura bowed to the council, all of whom wore large grins and turned to leave. As she exited the room, Allura felt as though she could fly without her beloved lion. Unable to contain herself, she laughed aloud and spun in circles until dizzy, she crashed into a wall. _Goddess and God Above, thank you._

When she entered her room, both Magda and Coran waited her. Between them, on a dressmaker's dummy, hung her wedding dress.

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Dr. Gorma burst into his room, _like a storm cloud,_ thought Keith. His head had started to feel a little muzzy from the dose of muscle relaxants and pain killers given to him.

The doctor did not say a word, but simply picked up the captain's wrist to check his pulse, and then used a pen light to test his eyes. Even though medical technology had come far in the ability to detect changes in patients with a simple machine, many doctors still felt the need to use their own senses to check. Mikko, especially, had found that sometimes his instincts told him something the machines did not. "Well?" he asked his recalcitrant patient.

"I needed t' think," he replied.

"You NEED to do EXACTLY what I say you can and cannot do, young man. I have not spent six weeks fattening you up and patching you to see you waste my efforts.!"

"'M sorry," came the slurred answer as the medicines side effects and the over exertion started catching up with Keith. His eyes closed even as he gave a one sided smile to Gorma, "Pr'bly happen again."

Sighing, Mikko watched as his patient drifted into sleep. Then he chuckled slightly. His worst patient had it only partially correct, it would not _probably_ happen again, it WOULD happen again. The captain just did not know how to follow medical orders or how to relax. His physical therapists had to hold him back to prevent him from causing more damage by forcing muscles to work at a higher level than they could. On the other hand, Mikko could understand his frustration. Captain Kogane spent years training his body to perform at a very high level and had become accustomed to pushing himself harder and further than anyone else. Now, simple therapies left him gasping for breath and exhausted. One of the physical therapists, Gretta, had learned the hard way--the captain did not complain. In one of their first sessions, he pushed himself into convulsions by trying to do more than his body was capable. Gretta took it upon herself to warn the other therapists, and they kept a close eye on the captain to protect him from himself.

With one last check on the captain to ensure the medications had stopped all the spasms, he walked to his office. He should have had someone check on the captain sooner, but felt the young man needed time alone to absorb what the counselors offered. Dr. Gorma had voted in favor of the proclamation and the offer without hesitation. It was his little way of playing matchmaker.

After forty-five minutes without word from the captain, he had sent in one of the nurses to see if he needed anything. She found Kogane on the floor, making small pain noises, his back and left arm in spasms. The nurse had quickly called for Gorma, who arrived in less than a minute. Within two more minutes, they had administered a very powerful muscle relaxant combined with a pain killer. As the spasms eased, the doctor asked his patient why he had not called for help.

The captain had looked at him, and answered between waves, "Couldn't. Too intense."

"What were you doing that brought this on?"

"I," the captain started, "I needed to clear my mind. Needed to think." He paused to let another, weaker spasm pass. "Thought a little bit of yoga would help," he smiled ruefully, "I guess I just lost track of time."

Shaking his head, the doctor stood and let the nurses load the captain onto a gurney. The lack of protest showed Gorma how much the episode had taken out of Kogane. The doctor waited until the nurses would have a chance to settle the captain into his room, before striding angrily down the hall.

Now the captain slept again. Mikko walked to his office and sat down in his chair. He felt too old for this. Unfortunately, the lack of trained personnel dictated he stay in his current position indefinitely. He had petitioned several other planets and Galaxy Garrison for more doctors, nurses, and medical aides, but shortages ran high. A few trickled in here and there, but not enough to meet the demands of Arus. Two years ago, the first crop of would-be-doctors went to medical schools on Earth, Ebb, and Calanda. It would take three more years before the first would return, trained to Arus. Until then, they would have to hobble along and make do.

Angrily, Mikko shook his head. He was feeling sorry for himself again, and that just would not do. He was not the only one who made sacrifices. Lack of trained people permeated though every discipline. Arus would survive, grow, and prosper. It would take time, but it WOULD happen.

With that thought, he rose to make his rounds and then head home early to his wife. An evening with her always restored his perspective and energized him. Blessed the day indeed, he met his Lara.

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Keith finally woke from the sedative Gorma had administered. Groping for the controls for the bed, he winced as his arm throbbed in protest. Slowly, the bed moved to an upright position. When the wave of dizziness passed, the captain pressed the button to summon a nurse. Over the last few weeks of recovery, he had learned to call for help after a sedative dose unless he wanted to find himself on the floor. Within a few moments one of the night nurses, Bekka entered the room.

"1.30am, 12 hours, yes, no, all ready."

Keith gave a weak chuckle in response. It had become a joke between the staff and himself regarding the first five questions he always asked; the time, how long he had slept, had Cady stopped by, had anyone captured Lotor, could he please have a shower. Carefully, Keith swung his legs over the side of the bed. Bekka came over with a bottle of concentrated sugars and vitamins. With a shaking hand, Keith carefully lifted the bottle and took a sip, swishing the faintly minty liquid around his mouth to wet it, then swallowed half the contents.

The first three times Gorma had sedated Keith after a body spasm, he had ordered a high calorie shake or bar to try and quickly replace calories lost due to the seizure and the sedation. Each time, the captain had vomited soon after eating. Switching sedatives made no difference but experiments proved he could handle a solution of fructose, glucose, and vitamins.

Handing the bottle back to Bekka, Keith carefully stood, testing his legs to ensure they would not collapse under him. A wave of grey with black dots flooded his vision. Breathing slowly, the man waited until they cleared again.

"Ok?" asked Bekka, having been through this routine with her patient a half a dozen times.

Nodding, Keith turned to walk to the door, concentrating on putting each foot in front of the other. Five steps to the door, then a right turn. Take the bar along the wall. Twenty slow, deliberate steps between rooms. Three rooms to the showers.

Bekka walked beside him, letting the captain set the pace. His chart indicated the spasm today lasted longer than normal and had spread to his back as well as his left arm. She saw clear indications in the way he walked; slower and more deliberate than normal. His hand did not leave the bar and unlike the last time they had made this trip, the captain did not attempt to make small talk or inquire about Bekka's family.

When they arrived at the showers, her patient let out an audible sigh and slowly sat in the chair just inside the entrance to the showers, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the wall. She opened the bottle again and put it on the table next to the chair on his right hand side. "Captain, I am going to grab another bottle for you." She tried to put a smile into her voice. The poor man looked like he had taken several steps backwards in the healing process today.

Without opening his eyes, the commander nodded.

"Bottle is on your right. When you can finish." Another nod answered her. Setting down the towels and clean garments, she walked out of the room.

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Keith listed to Bekka's footsteps retreating down the hallway. He felt like warmed over shit. He appreciated Bekka giving him some time to recover a bit. Deliberately he pushed back the thought which had started to rise to the surface. He just wanted a bit longer to recover before letting his mind engage. Opening his eyes slightly, he turned his head enough to spot the bottle next to him. Carefully, he reached his still shaking, but not as much, hand to grab it and carefully drink the remainder. He really, really, loathed and detested those damnable sedatives. They knocked him out, messed with his stomach, and generally left him feeling hung over or doped.

Taking a deep breath, he looked down at his left arm and hand. It still felt half-asleep most of the time but Gorma thought the sensation would fade as the muscle came back and the shoulder healed. The good doctor did not think a second surgery would help. Earlier they had discussed some alternate treatments which may help repair the nerves. Keith knew he would do anything to regain the use of his hand and arm. He could not fly if he could not react.

Shaking his head, Keith stopped that line of thought. Not now. He would not think of that now. Smiling ruefully, he momentarily felt glad to have left the room. No sense broadcasting his distress where someone could hear.

Rousing himself, he tried to take off his loose top only to stop as a stabbing pain shot through his shoulder. Once again, he could not raise his left arm above chest level. "Fuck! Blessed stupid damned useless arm!" Grabbing the empty bottle with his mostly good right arm, he flung it across the room where it hit a bench and bounced onto the floor. With a shuddering breath, he propped his elbow on the side of the chair and covered his eyes with his right hand, taking deep breaths.

Three weeks. Three fucking weeks of therapy, pain, and spasm after spasm. And that is only what HE remembered. According to his chart, they had started working with his arm shortly after the death of the parasite. After five weeks of therapy, one damned incident had set him back two weeks of therapy. He still slept at least twelve damn hours every damned day. He looked like a walking advertisement for anorexia, and could not finish the simplest yoga routine without sending his traitorous body into convulsions. And on top of everything else. . .No he could NOT think about that right now. Right now he was going to drink another gaggingly sweet invalid's fucking drink and have to ask for help to take off the damned shirt. Hell, he did not even have any privacy in the shower. Every two or three minutes an overly-concerned nurse or orderly poked their every-so solicitous head in to make sure he did not keel over on them and die. After all, the planet had declared him a damn hero. Hero's marry the beautiful princess, ride off into the perfect sunset and everything turns up roses.

Of course no one ever considered the damned hero just wants to stop hurting every damned minute, would like his hands to stop shaking like an old spavined war horse or considers the princess. . .

"Captain?"

The hesitant voice interrupts his thoughts. Slowly raising his hand, he focused on the lady in front of him.

"Drink this."

A bottle appeared in front of his eyes. He took the bottle and quickly downed the contents. Closing his eyes and laying his head against the wall the held out the empty container.

He has to get out. He cannot stay in this hospital. He needs to just, just GO. Taking a breath, a plan started to form. He opened his eyes to find Bekka folding towels, waiting for him. Of all the nurses, she obviously hovers the least, for which he is grateful.

"Bekka?"

"Yes, captain?"

"My arm has stuck again."

"Ahhh," she smiles, "Well, easily remedied." Tossing the towel down, she walks over to help her hero.

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The insistent beeping woke him from a deep sleep. Fumbling for the communicator, he pressed the button. "This had better be life or death." Muttered the sleep-fogged voice.

"I need your help."

"On my way."

Years of attacks and discipline washed the sleep out of the man and within a minute he had dressed and strode out of the room. His friend needed him, sleep could come later.

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Keith sat in a chair next to the lone table in his room, dressed in loose fitting yoga pants, a thick sweater, woolen socks and hard soled leather slippers lined with wool. His head lay back, with a data pad held lightly in his right arm, eyes focused on the ceiling above him, a listening expression on his face. He roused and looked at the man who came into the room.

"You look like shit."

A half-smiled crossed the sitting man's face. "An improvement, I am sure."

"Over week in the grave dead? Would 'Hell Yes' be appropriate here?"

"Mmmm." A pause settled over the pair, each studying the other. "You could use a shave."

The other man laughed, "A shave, shower, forty days of sleep, and a hot date to name a few other things." The smile faded, "What do you need?"

"I need out of here and I need to see Black. And I do not need a host of babysitters following me and asking every 2 seconds how I am doing? Do I need anything?" Keith blew out a breath and ran a mostly steady hand through his hair. He leaned his head back against the chair and closed his eyes for a moment. "Can you do it?"

Silence greeted Keith's words and after a minute opened his eyes to see his friend studying him and tapping fingers against his hastily donned clothing, rumpled from laying on the floor. He looked at the clock on the wall and did some hasty calculations in his head. "Give me ten minutes." He took one stride to the wall and stopped, "Black is still in the repair bay. Systems still giving us fits. Can you walk that far?"

"No." Came the quiet answer from behind him.

Knowing what it cost for Keith to admit that caused the man to realize just how much his Captain had truly lost. Kogane always had an aura of energy about him regardless of how tired or injured he appeared. In their four years on Arus, Keith always walked out of the hospital under his own power in his own time; not always fast or steady. For him to admit he could not walk to Black. . . "I need an extra couple minutes. Be back." Without any further words, he hurried out of the room.

Picking up the data pad, Keith scrawled out a note for the hospital staff and placed it on the bed where they would find it. No sense in starting a panic when their erstwhile Hero appeared to have disappeared. Hero. The thoughts he blocked early exploded into his brain. Pressing his right hand to his head he closed his eyes and let the thoughts overwhelm him without apply any rhyme or reason. Too many thoughts and too much to ponder. Too many responsibilities. The pilot sat in the chair until he heard a throat clearing. Looking up he smiled. Rather than a wheelchair, his friend had brought a scooter. Darrell and Hunk had designed them in their spare time half a lifetime ago. Since Arus had few roads, wheeled conveyances did not fare well. People followed the animal paths or rode horses. Some few had starting purchasing floater cars, but most could not afford the cost. The dynamic duo had put their heads together and made a scooter which floated slightly above the ground. It did not go fast, but it could go nearly anywhere!

"Thought this would work better than a wheelchair. More maneuverable, too!"

Nodding his head, Keith carefully stood, bearing his weight on his right arm. Bekka had placed a brace around his left shoulder and arm to take some of the weight and give Keith limited use of it. The more he could force the arm to do, the better it would recover. He looped a small bag around his shoulder to lay at the small of his back and stepped on the scooter.

"Lead on, McDuff!"

Nodding, the second man pressed a small button on a box in his hand. "This will loop the cameras for about 5 minutes in here and as we approach the security cameras, we will have about 1 minute before they reset. We need to move fairly quickly. Let's go."

Without further discussion, the two headed down the hallway.

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Ten minutes later, the pair approached the repair area. Round the clock work had ceased as people tried to return to a normal routine. At 3am, a quiet deserted cavernous room greeted them. The black lion dominated the other vehicles surrounding him. Even with the scaffolding and wires surrounding him, the scratches and dents not yet repaired, the Black somehow looked majestic. Smiling, Keith rode the scooter over to the right front leg. "Hello my friend."

He looked back at the man behind him, "Would you. . .?"

The other man did not let Keith finish his sentence, "Be back in a few hours. Try to let me have a little sleep, hey?" With that, the man turned and strode out of the repair area.

With a deep sigh, Keith watched him leave.

Several minutes later the elevator to the cockpit descended. Carefully, the captain maneuvered the scooter over to the elevator. Leaving the scooter next to it, he stepped onto the elevator, holding on to one of the supports. "Ready"

At his word, the elevator slowly and gently rose to the access door. The captain stepped into and then looked around the cockpit. Hunk had obviously worked hard to repair Black. Wires and boards lay neatly near where they belonged. Scratches and dents still marred every surface, but the chair looked perfect. No tears nor holes. Keith wandered over to the place he felt most at home and ran his fingers over the chair. The scratches and scuffs which had marked four years of fighting no longer existed. "Hmm?" He said aloud. "Oh, I know not enough of the chair remained to repair, but I cannot help feeling I have lost something else."

An onlooker would find the apparently one sided conversation rather odd, but Keith did not notice anymore.

"Yes, I know you will remember, but we earned each and every scuff and scratch."

"It does look more comfortable. How about I give it a try?" The Black pilot sighed as he sank into the chair. The trip to Black had taken more out of him than he thought. Left over from the sedation, he supposed. He felt the ache in his abused body, but pushed the sensation aside. "Yes, I am tired, but I have questions which you will answer more fully than either Magda or Coran. You know about the proclamation?"

Keith paused and rubbed his head. "Truthfully? My head hurts quite a bit; can we do this aloud for now?"

A low rumble filled the cabin and an artificial voice emerged from the speakers. "Of course, my person."

Sighing, the pilot laid his head back and closed his eyes. "Fill me in?" He asked.

"The tradition goes back to the founding of Arus. The early rulers realized that birth did not dictate the ability to rule, but ability did. In the beginning, much like Earth history, many smaller countries existed, each with their own kinglet or queenlet. As humans would, they warred amongst themselves. One small group of people watched the conflict around them and then decided to step aside to act as guardians and caretakers of the history of Arus. With them they took some powerful warriors and witches. Within a generation, the rest of the planet came to respect their neutrality. In return, they kept the history and acted as intermediaries between peoples and countries. Over the course of several generations, a tradition started of recognizing a Hero; someone who performed an extraordinary deed, who gave of himself unto death or to near death. In the beginning, only the Guardians could declare a Hero. As time passed, the Guardians gave the people a say in declaring a Hero. In the time since, only twice have the people declined to name a Hero the Guardians put forth.

The Guardians realized these Heroes who gave of themselves would found a new dynasty which would one day unite Arus under one house. From the first, they would offer the Heroes one of the sons or daughters of a ruling house as a spouse. The Hero would have one full day to consider the offer from sunup to sundown. In that time, the proposed spouse would have no contact with the Hero to assure no outside influence would affect the Hero's decision. Over time, the time given to the Hero to contemplate became a time of meditation and solitude with guards standing watch to prevent anyone other than a healer or Guardian from approaching the Hero."

Keith sat quietly contemplating what Black had revealed. "Does the proposed spouse have a choice in the matter?"

"No. The Guardians suggest a candidate and the people have a right to decline. The electing of a Hero has two parts. The vote to confirm the Hero and the vote to accept or decline the spouse. The Guardians, however, choose carefully whom they offer. If a declared Hero already has a spouse and family, obviously no other spouse is proposed."

"If I decline?"

"Once a spouse is proposed, that person is considered a ward of the Guardians. He or she will no longer have a say in whom they marry."

A longer pause followed Black's pronouncement. "So should I choose to decline the offer of Allura's hand, what will happen to her?"

The lion did not immediately answer, but Keith let the silence relax him.

"The Guardians will pick an alternate spouse for her at an appropriate time."

"If I accept?"

"The binding ceremony will occur three days after acceptance."

"And Cady?"

"Will be accepted as a princess, though not royal by birth. She cannot rule because she carries no Arusian blood."

Several minutes passed in a comfortable silence.

"Pilot, she wants nothing more than for you to marry Allura. She often talks of the family she wants. The family is you to marry Allura and give her brothers and sisters. Her vision of a perfect life is all her family married, living in the castle and giving her many cousins, sisters, and brothers."

"I know," came the quiet reply.

Again, silence fell over the cabin. Nearly 20 minutes passed before Keith stirred and opened his eyes. "The illusion of choice without the substance of choice." He looked at the panel above him as the answer spoke in his mind. A humorless smile crossed his face, "A declared Hero acts for the people first, true?" Touching the controls on the right arm rest, Keith lowered the chair into a reclining position. Closing his eyes, he let his body grow heavy and felt the chair conform to him. "Comfy."

With a low rumble in the background sounding and feeling like a purr, the young man let his mind drift into sleep.

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	22. 24 hours later

Once again, my humble thanks to Wade Wells for taking the time to do the Beta. I also want to acknowledge everyone who has left a review (take a look and you can see who!).

The saga will soon end. Please let me know what you think!

Without further ado. . .

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Nervously, the Princess smoothed the front of her dress. Inside the door sat the man who would decide her future. The council had informed her of the proclamation two days ago. The populace received notification before her, in accordance with tradition. This also dictated her absence from Keith for the last two days. Once the council had delivered the proclamation and offer, she must stay away from any contact with the declared Hero from one sunrise to the next. Tradition also forbear anyone from speaking to him about the request to give the Hero a chance to decide without any pressure. If no decision came after the first time period, he would receive a longer period for contemplation of three risings and settings of the sun. Since he had spent much of the first day unconscious, the council had asked her to wait until today.

Heart pounding, Allura raised her hand to the door chime. A few moments later a voice from within bade her enter. He sat on the floor, back against a chair, legs crossed in front of him by the window, face toward the sunlight, eyes closed against the light.

Delaying a moment, the young woman took the time to study the man she had loved for so long and saw the changes the last four years had brought. He wore his ebony hair in a practical, short style, more suited to a commander; o_r a king_ whispered her mind. Cheekbones stood out prominently in a face still too thin and dark circles rimmed his eyes. Even relaxed, lines around his mouth gave evidence to the pain he felt much of the time. Her eyes roamed the rest of him. He had dressed warmly in a thick sweater and yoga pants, even on this warm day. Dr. Gorma had told her the captain felt cool much of the time; he did not have the body mass to produce heat. The clothes looked too big on him, as a child playing dress-up; yet they looked much better than a few weeks before. Finally her eyes came to rest on the captain's hands. They rested on his knees, palms facing upward. Just looking at them, she could see the scars where the barbs had penetrated. The right palm look worse because he had ripped them out of his hand without regard to any damage in order to keep Voltron flying. Allura knew he had not yet gained the full use of his hands.

"I promise to drink the stuff, Peder," Keith's exasperated voice interrupted Allura's introspection.

She smiled, "I am not Peder. And do not stand up," she added as the captain's eyes flew open and his right hand went down beside his right leg.

Nodding he relaxed his legs back to a resting position, raising his right hand to use as a block against the light. Allura moved to lower a shade enough to block the sun from hitting Keith's face. He took the opportunity to study her as she stood in a three-quarter profile to him. She had dressed in a very formal white gown, the kind usually worn for state functions with high level guests. The gown left shoulders and neck bare and long sleeves covered her arms ending in points at the back of her hand. The bodice of the gown fitted closely and flared at the hips. The dress rose slightly, higher in the front, to a small six inch train in the back. The ivory colored silk suited the princess' coloring better than a brighter white. Her maid had dressed her hair by curling it in ringlets and then pinning the ringlets to the top of her head allowing some to flow down her back underneath a small veil. Her formal tiara nestled within her blond hair with a single diamond resting on her forehead. Diamonds sparkled in the sunshine from her ears; each boasted three diamonds hanging one below another on silver wire. The only other jewelry she wore surprised Keith; a simple silver locket Cady had picked out for her which held a photo of Cady and one of Allura's parents. Hidden under her skirt, she would have shoes dyed to match her dress, with a very small heel. With the sun behind her, Allura looked very bridal, mused Keith, and very nervous he added to himself as she fiddled with the shade raising and lowering it minutely.

"Allura," Keith began. His voice had the effect of stilling her hands even as she inhaled quickly. He saw her swallow before turning to face him fully, causing him to change his words even as he began to speak, "I missed seeing you yesterday."

Whirling back to face the window, she looked blindly outward. "Tradition dictated I could not visit."

Sighing, Keith slowly levered himself to a standing position, wincing at the protest in his legs. He took two steps to close the distance between the princess and himself. Hands warmed from the sun came to rest on her cool, bare shoulders and gently turned her to face him. Stubbornly she kept her gaze on his feet. With one finger under her chin, he raised her eyes to his. "Talk to me, Princess. My magic mind reading wand broke and the fairies cannot fix it." He gave a small smile at the old joke.

She looked him in the eyes for a long moment, a trembling smile lifting one corner of her mouth. With a deep breath Allura took one small step back from him. With a graceful movement she took his right hand in both of hers and knelt on one knee before him. "I, Allura Joyeux of House Arella, heir to the throne and named Princess Elect, do present myself before you, Keith Kogane called Lieutenant Colonel by your people, named, Pilot of Black Lion, sworn as defender of Arus, named Commander of the defenders of the planet, and declared Hero in accordance with the dictates of my people and the traditions handed down from one generation of lore masters to the next and offer myself to you as your bride."

Keith looked down at the beautiful young woman kneeling at his feet. He had known she would come today. He had wrestled with the answer, and even after reaching a decision, questioned it. After the disaster yesterday and the visit with Black, he had spent the rest of the day here, meditating and pondering his choice. The doctor had kindly left him alone after receiving assurances he would try no yoga and could only do some minimal Tai Chi. Two monitors carefully attached underneath his sweater allowed the staff to monitor him. Keith had happily agreed as it meant he could truly spend the day alone without someone checking on him constantly.

For the first time since the battle with the porcupine, Keith could not only relax but immerse himself in deep meditation. At some point, someone had brought him a light lunch and more of the goop. He had forced himself to consume every drop of the goop and every bite of the lunch before returning to his contemplations. As he looked at the woman kneeling at his feet, heart in her eyes, he mentally sighed. He had made the correct decision, now both of them would have to live with it.

Taking a deep breath, Keith carefully dropped to one knee and reached for both of Allura's hands. Looking in her eyes, he saw both hope and trepidation. "Allura Joyeux, of House Arella, heir to the throne, and named Princess Elect, do I, Keith Kogane, called Lieutenant Colonel by my people, named Pilot of Black Lion, sworn as defender of Arus, named as Commander of the defenders of this planet and newly declared Hero, accept you as my bride in accordance with tradition and in accord with the dictates of your people."

"Oh!" Gasped Allura as a single tear escaped from eyes blazing with joy.

Smiling, Keith rose to both feet and pulled Allura to hers. Placing her hands on his chest, he cupped her face with his hands, brushing away the single tear with a thumb. Slowly, Keith leaned closer, keeping his eyes open and brushed his lips against Allura's. She sighed and her eyes drifted shut. Keeping his kisses gentle, Keith captured her lips in lingering caresses. He felt the princess begin to relax against him, her arms sliding up his chest and around his neck. Keith slid his hands slowly down her bare neck and shoulders his right coming to rest at the small of her back, his left making small circles on the bare skin of the back of her neck.

Drifting away from Allura's lips, the captain dotted her neck with small kisses up to her earlobe. Nipping it gently he quickly soothed with his tongue. Allura shuddered and her head fell sideways to give him better access. Keith lathed attention to her ear for long moments before retracing his journey back to her lips and across to give her other ear the same treatment.

Allura's hands moved restlessly over her hero and an errant thought crossed her mind. Reading trashy romance novels had nothing on the real thing! Her heart beat faster and the sensations washing over her wiped away any thought.

When Keith's mouth moved back to hers, he gently ran his tongue along her bottom lip, asking for entrance. Moaning softly, she granted it to him, and he deepened the kiss. His hands pulled her even closer until she felt herself pressed against him from chest to thigh. After several minutes, Keith pulled away from her, placing small kisses on her lips and forehead before leaning his forehead against hers.

Opening her eyes, Allura felt slightly tipsy and smiled at the visage of Keith. Moistening her lips, she pulled back slightly to look him in the eyes, "I love you."

With a smile, Keith quickly captured her lips and her mouth, occupying her for several minutes. When the door chimed, he pulled slowly away with a last kiss. "A moment, please," he called. Allura took several breaths and slowly withdrew from the circle of his arms. When she nodded, he put her hand on his arm in a formal pose and bade the caller to enter.


	23. Epilogue

I wish to thank all those who left comments, critiques, and sent e-mails with encouragement and prodding. As most of those who write here, my writing dates back to grammar school as does my fascination with the Voltron story. This story has brewed with the dozens of others in the back of my head for some time. For me, sharing a story means sharing something very intimate with others. As with many authors, something of myself goes into and winds around each chapter.

Look for one more post in the story, a few Cady scenes which did not make it into this story, and an example of "When good writing goes bad" or "DELETE, DELETE, DELETE!" Feel free to laugh, I did!

A very special thanks to Wade Wells who makes me laugh, reads my Betas as soon as they arrive because she cannot wait. Truly, this kind of response makes it easy to want to write more. Thank you, Ms. Wells, thank you.

The kind comments left by people, the encouragement, and the ability to see how many people read this story has bolstered my courage as a writer. Although I do plan a return to the Voltron world, the dream of putting to paper (so to speak) my own characters and story (and perhaps published?) can now proceed. I have started another story, but wish to have several chapters done before posting. No sense leaving people hanging for so long!

I finally feel and believe in myself enough to give it a try.

This story then, I dedicate to each person who followed it, told a friend, and most especially to those who wrote to me encouragement and sent demands for updates. Even the greatest of wordsmiths could not adequately express in language the gift each of you has bestowed upon me.

I thank you wholeheartedly. Blessings to you!

--Kristina McCrady

June 2009

P.S. Now that this is done, tell your friends! Tell your family! Heck, tell total strangers on the street…. :)

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Keith sat on the floor of the observation room, legs crossed, hands resting on his knees, palms face-up, head resting against the arm of the chair, eyes closed, letting the sun bake his bones. As each year passed, he felt the cold more deeply, never having regained all he had lost to the porcupine RoBeast. It had taken nearly a year before the doctor had finally declared him fit to fly.

Shortly after his return, the Garrison pilot who had come to fly Black declared she would feel more comfortable in Blue. After consulting with the other pilots, they decided to form a third team to fly Voltron. Black had informed Keith he would prefer Arusian people as more could hear him. Agreeing, the young monarch had scoured the ranks of the military until he and Black found two suitable people. He had then found four more pilots to train for the other lions. When Allura had asked why, Keith shrugged and said he felt it necessary. His insight proved itself once again when Allura found herself expecting their first child three months later. She retired as an active pilot for Voltron at the discovery. It would not do to have both parents putting themselves in danger.

As the years passed, each of the original pilots married and started families. Much to Cady's delight, her Uncles and their families chose to stay in the palace. Her dream of the extended family came true. Hunk and Saria married first in a small ceremony the same day as Keith and Allura. Lance and Nieve Jenkins surprised everyone with their announcement a year later, much to the amusement of their lions. Nieve had developed a strong connection with Green during Lotor's invasion with the porcupine beast. She would train each new pilot of Green even after stepping down from active duty. Three more years would pass before Darrell would find his Gretta.

The castle filled with the sounds of laughter and children. As the children grew, so did the castle occupants change and grow. The planet blossomed under the rule of Keith and Allura. Arus had her Hero and his Queen. Their children inherited their mother's heart and their father's valor. In turn, they would become Ruler, Prime Minister, and a Guardian.

Cady would follow her father as overall Leader of Voltron and pilot of Black. Keith watched with pride the day she graduated from the Arusian Military Academy and took his place. She had just turned 23. He would continue to fly Black on routine patrols and to escape in the times when Arus experienced peace. She married at 26 to an artist famous for his portrait of Keith and Black which hung in her parent's suite.

Dr. Gorma had retired from his active practice, with the exception of Keith, four years after the first graduates of Ebb, Earth, and Calanda returned. He continued to work with his King because, in his words, 'He would just eat the new batch and leave them wondering what happened.'

Opening his eyes, Keith looked down at his left hand. It had never recovered to the same point as before, although it came close. Near as Dr. Gorma estimated, he recovered 95% of movement and ability. Still far above the average, but it had been a big blow to Keith. He never recovered all his previous speed and strength. He always felt just a moment slower.

The final lasting effect became evident after his first encounter upon returning to active duty. Early the next morning, he had awoken with his left arm in spasms. Luckily, Dr. Gorma had the foresight to leave a muscle relaxant for Allura to administer in case of need. He would continue to fight, but after each battle reported for a massage and soak in a hot tub. Each recovery took a little more out of Keith, although he could hide it from everyone except the doctor and his wife. She watched him and nursed him at night as the spasms would hit, and participated in the deception for the rest of the world. The original team suspected something, but out of respect for their leader did not pursue their suspicions.

Both Keith and Allura breathed a sigh of relief when Cady graduated and could take her father's role as Leader of Voltron. With her ascension to Black, Keith became the last of the original team to retire from actively flying and fighting with Voltron. The rest of the team had passed on their responsibilities over the last ten years. Hunk had first retired to take a teaching position at the academy. Darrell had surprised everyone by leaving active duty shortly after Hunk to study and work exclusively on security systems and computer interfaces. Lance retired when he turned 40. He took a position at the military academy teaching flying and dog fighting.

Garrison never caught Lotor. For a time, he disappeared into the vastness of space without even a whisper of his whereabouts. No one knew how many ships had come in the first massive invasion. Although Garrison had captured many ships, aboard they found no living beings nor any useful data. The ghost ships had computer cores stripped, rooms empty. The stores had no food, no medical supplies, no weapons. Personal quarter did not yield a single artifact or trace of evidence anyone have ever occupied even one room.

Lotor continued to attack Arus every few years, each time with different ships, different technologies, and different species. The people of Arus defeated him every time he attacked, but not without causalities and massive amounts of damage to both sides. The Mad Prince, as the media named him (much to Keith's disgust) never again managed to raise an armada as large as the first. Rarely did he strike a target other than Arus and still demanded Allura marry him. Keith often wondered if Lotor would stop after their deaths, or, in his madness, continue to pursue Allura as his Queen.

Nearly 20 years had passed since Keith had passed Black to his daughter. Each original pilot still took out their lions on occasion. Keith uncrossed his legs to let them stretch in front of him, wincing as the tingling reminded him, at age 62 he could no longer sit with impunity for long stretches with his legs crossed. On Earth yoga and Tai Chi Chuan remained graceful until they passed into the next world. The King still practiced daily, but too many injuries, battles, and general abuse of his body had taken their toll.

He and Allura had already discussed stepping down from active rule and let their oldest child take his place. Jamis would rule with a firm hand and a kind heart. Besides, he wanted to spend his remaining years teaching Tai Chi Chuan and yoga, not as King, but simply as Coach or Teacher. He had placed his dream of teaching on hold for over 40 years. For once, he wanted to put his wants and needs ahead of others.

The door opened with a gentle swish, but Keith did not open his eyes. He felt someone settle next to him, and a head come to rest on his right shoulder. Smiling, Keith leaned his head against his daughter, and let his right hand take her left and rest on his thigh. "Hello, Sweetheart."

"Hello Daddy."

The two sat quietly together basking in the sunshine. They did not have opportunity for these stolen moments often, and tried to make time to spend just the two of them.

"Daddy, I have to ask you something."

Keith heard a hesitation in her voice seldom heard when they spoke. "I have no secrets from you Cady. Just ask."

She hesitated a long moment before asking, "Do you love Mama Allura?"

Catching his breath, Keith felt his body tense, and then forced it to relax. "Of course I love Allura, Cady. Why do you ask?"

He felt more than heard her sigh and she sat up to look at him in the eyes. "Are you _in love_ with her?"

For the first time, words failed Keith. How could he answer his daughter? What words could he offer to explain what had occurred so many years before now? He opened his mouth several times and then closed it.

Cady nodded. "Did you ever want to marry Mama Allura and be king?"

Keith sighed and closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the chair once more. "No," he replied softly. "I had other dreams."

"People always speak of your great love and devotion to your Queen. How you never pursued her because of your humbleness and your honor. How you constantly stood between her and danger, never hesitating to sacrifice yourself for her. Your love for her allowed you to go beyond greatness. The people had to declare you a Hero if only to allow you to join the woman you loved beyond all measure. . .you never felt this way?"

The man could only shake his head helplessly. "Why are you asking now?"

Cady sat back and looked out the window at the vista before them. Now, in the spring time, green abounded as the land rose from slumber. "I have wondered for years, and needed to know." She paused and took a breath, "Why? Why would you sacrifice so much for a planet not even yours by birth?"

Looking at his daughter, Keith realized he did not know how to answer. Only one knew his struggle and his choice; Black. "How do you know to ask these questions?"

She shrugged. "Comments from Black, observing you and Mama Allura, trying to match the stories to what I remember from the time before you married. Some things just did not add up. I finally asked Black and he only replied to speak with you. Please, Daddy, why? Mama Allura believes you have the love of a lifetime. She adores you as much now as I remember from when I was little. You have always treated her like something precious and adored. Why, if you have never been _in_ love with her?"

Closing his eyes once more, he sat quietly, gathering his thoughts. "You are sure Allura knows nothing of this?"

"I am sure."

"I will trust you to never speak of this again, not to anyone."

"I promise."

"When we first arrived on this planet, I cannot begin to describe the conditions. You have heard the stories. In the middle of this was a young monarch, trying desperately to follow in her father's shoes and save her planet. For years, she had known nothing but war, destruction, and the daily struggle just to survive. The five of us appeared, brash, filled with confidence, and belief we were invincible. Being young men, Allura's beauty stunned us. We quickly learned she had retained some naïve ideas and she decided I was her hero, her knight in shining armor, and the answer to her prayers all rolled up in one package.

"She took to following me around and finding the flimsiest of excuses to search me out. The other four quickly and gleefully dropped her in my lap, happy to not have to deal with this child in a woman's body. In many ways she exhibited wisdom beyond her years and in others, well you understand.

"At one point she overheard me complaining to Lance about her behavior and went running to Coran the next day. Suffice to say Coran and I had long discussions about the Princess and I agreed to help train her to lead and to protect herself. In return, he would speak to her about the behavior expected between a princess and a protector.

"Over the next few years, I taught her everything I could. I looked upon her as a younger sister. She spent time with you, and I thought she took the role of an aunt.

"I knew she harbored a crush on me, but thought with time and as the planet recovered, it would pass. Eventually, we all expected Garrison to reassign us. After the first year, they made it clear this would turn into a permanent post at the request of Arus and in exchange for the Voltron technology.

"I did everything I could not to encourage Allura into thinking anything could develop with us. On my side I had the traditions of Arus and the fact I had already married once and the union produced a child. It made me an unsuitable candidate for either Allura's hand or the throne.

"Then Lotor returned and the planet declared me a Hero, with a capital H. The 163rd in the history of the planet. With that came honor, glory, and the offer of their most prized possession, their princess and the throne.

"Black and I talked and I spent much time thinking and meditating on this problem. In the end, I had to accept this was an illusion of choice. A choice without substance. To refuse would not only crush Allura, but would rip away the Arusian's chance at a happy ending or beginning as the case may be. The honor of Hero showed me the people had placed me on a pedestal. I lived against all odds. Somehow my survival and existence became intertwined with the survival and existence of the planet."

Stopping, the man balled his right hand and lightly hit his thigh. "Since I had come here and saved their Princess, it was only right I should be given the Princess. Never mind I saw her as a little sister or that the great love affair was really one sided. I had made a promise to protect the planet and to abide by their traditions. I had no choice."

He blew out his breath and waited. In the silence, he felt her stillness next to him, and heard her breathing.

Then he felt himself enveloped in a hug. He wrapped his arms around his daughter as two tears escaped and trailed down his cheeks.

"I love you, Daddy. I have always been proud to be your daughter and follow in your footsteps. Today, I am awe of what you sacrificed for the people of an entire planet. I can only hope all four of us, your children, can be worthy of this sacrifice. I am in awe of how you never made Mama Allura feel you did not carry the same passion for her as she did and does for you. I cannot fathom making the choice you did willingly and selflessly. You truly are a Hero, Daddy. But not for the big sacrifice, but for the love you showered on all of us and the people you shaped the four of us to be. Thank you, Daddy, for giving me my dream of a family at the expense of yours. Thank you, Daddy, for giving me a world at the expense of your life."

Keith could say nothing, but simply held his daughter, letting the tears fall.

Eventually, she sat back and both took a moment to compose themselves. With a last deep breath, the man looked at the beautiful woman who sat beside him. "I have no regrets, Cady. For Allura has given me three beautiful children, and took you as her own daughter. You four are my passion and my reward. Now I have grandchildren to teach and to watch grow and develop. My children have a planet which has become a place of beauty, culture, and knowledge. Although peace comes and goes, we have built a world which will never again fall to tyranny and will come to the aid of any and all who need it. I have been rewarded a thousand thousand times for my decision. I would not change it."

Cady nodded and wiped her cheek. She leaned over to give her father a kiss. "Thank you, Daddy, for everything."

Keith pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and gently wiped her face as he had done during her childhood. The two turned to sit and watch the sun travel over the land quietly, together.

Allura found them together near sunset. As she walked into the room, Cady looked up and placed a finger against her lips. Smiling, Allura approached her sleeping husband carefully. He had slept fitfully the last few nights, and she felt happy to see him relaxed. As she knelt beside him, Allura opened her mouth to ask Cady a question when she found herself pulled across her husband and quickly and thoroughly kissed. "I smelled your perfume."

Looking at her husband of nearly 35 years, Allura thought he never ceased to surprise her. She laughed and looked at Cady in time to see an indecipherable expression cross her face before settling into a smile. "It must be close to dinner if you came looking for us."

Allura nodded, "20 minutes says Helena. Just enough time to gather."

Cady gracefully stood and then offered her hand to Allura. The women stood at the window a moment while they waited for Keith to rise. Each year he moved a little more slowly and the stiffness took longer to ease. Using the chair, Keith leveraged himself to a standing position, shaking out the tingles from his left arm. Smiling he offered an arm to each woman. "May I have the pleasure of escorting two beautiful women to the dining room?"

When Allura placed her hand in his, he absently raised it for a kiss before turning to his daughter. He was stunned to see her quickly blink away a tear before placing her hand on his proffered arm.

Outside on his monument, Black Lion stood watch over the castle; the protector, the guardian, ready to defend Arus and her people at a moment's notice. He had taken from Keith Kogane into himself the honor, valor, and self-sacrifice inherent to the man. The man would live on forever in the spirit of the Black Lion, long remembered, long cherished, and the spirit of his teaching would forever pass to each pilot Black accepted. Black and Voltron would stand forever in front of their people as a shield, taught ultimate sacrifice by one man who changed the shape of their world.

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Finis


	24. Thank you and Cut Scenes

Everyone knows the line about good intentions? I believe my road has three complete lanes with a fourth starting!

Please accept my apologies. I had intended to post these before and time escaped me. These are VERY rough drafts of scenes which did not make the final cut into the story. Just to show you my thought processes and because some of them are cute.

I also wanted to clear up a couple things.

Keith does love Allura, but is not IN love with her. There is a rather large distinction. Just because the "grand passion" does not exist, does not mean the many little loves of a marriage do not either. K&A grew into best friends, parents, and companions. You cannot have that kind of relationship without love.

In addition, history is filled with marriages in which no grand passion existed, but proved successful relationships. No, I am not going into details, go pick up a book! :)

Keith did not have the life he envisioned, but adapted and had a life of which he could take joy and pride. Read his words again. He has no regrets and would change nothing about his life. He does love Allura.

The story is not intended as sad nor to leave one unfulfilled. Rather, I wanted to show the face of true sacrifice and of the meaning of selfLESSness. The story shows honor, courage, and the incredible inner strength we can all possess in times of adversity.

Thank you to everyone who has read and commented on this. Words can never truly express the wonderment and joy knowing I have made people laugh, cry, and become angry over MY story. The fact I could evoke so many emotions leaves me in tears of gratitude and happiness.

Blessings on each and everyone of you.

--Kristina

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The summons to the team came in the midst of a rare break for the Voltron team. They had been relaxing in the rec room. Hunk fiddled with a mysterious electronic part with wires everywhere. Pidge had challenged Lance to a serious contest with Sven acting as judge. The first person to laugh lost. The only rule was no physical contact. Players had to take turns with jokes, body gestures, or noises. So far the only loser was the judge, who kept laughing at the efforts of the other two not to laugh. Keith had taken the opportunity to catch up on the endless paperwork of command. Though boring, the routine was an opportunity to turn off his brain and work by rote. The afternoon had been interrupted by a page. "Excuse me, Commander?" Keith looked up from his paperwork. "Coran asked me to inform you the transport you requested will land in 20 minutes."

"Thank you. Please inform Coran I am on my way to the tarmac. Gentlemen, if you would please accompany me?" Keith rose and with the team following, headed toward the landing area.

The four men fell in line behind their leader. "What's up, Cap? I did not know we were expecting anything from Earth." Lance remarked, "Did Garrison decide to send some back-up pilots? Lord knows we could use them!"

Keith only smiled and hurried his steps, "Even better, Lance. Just come see!"

The four pilots exchanged confused looks. Their valiant leader had not appeared so animated in quite some time. After four months on Arus, it had become obvious their quick hit and run mission had turned into a long term deployment. Garrison had made it clear they would be on their own, the Drule conflict had exploded galaxy wide and planets were pressed to supply their own militaries never mind a besieged planet with nothing obvious to offer at the edge of the galaxy. To Garrison's mind, if one planet could effectively draw off a substantial portion of the offensive forces of the Drule, the better.

They could only think Keith was expecting some supplies from home, perhaps news of his daughter and news of the rest of their families.

As they emerged outside, they could see a long distance shuttle settling in for a landing. The ever calm Keith was bobbing slightly on the balls of his feet in anticipation. The guys could hardly believe it. Their commander, _this_ excited over a shuttle?

As the doors started opening, Keith ran forward. Before the ramp had even descended, their captain had jumped aboard the shuttle. The other pilots looked even more confused. Several minutes later, Keith descended the ramp, a dark haired girl in his arms. Hunk, Sven, Pidge, and Lance ran as fast as they could toward the two. Cries of "Cady!" "Cady-did-what!" permeated the air. Soon all five pilots were busy passing around the little girl covering her in kisses and not letting her feet touch the ground. They six of them slowly made their way back to the castle and to the rec room.

In their absence, Nanny had slipped in and set up and impromptu celebration. They still did not have much in the way of supplies, but a small one layer cake, some native Arusian fruit just coming into season, and some spring water sat on one of the tables. She had also had one of the maids put up a welcome sign for the little girl. Keith would be surprised to find his rooms moved to a small suite with two bedrooms. Coran had arranged with Magda to give the commander a place suitable for a man and his daughter. In the meantime, this small celebration would allow them to appreciate what the captain and his crew had done in the short time since they had arrived. Although Lance took any thanks he could, Hunk loved a little extra on his plate, and Pidge just blushed, the captain pushed aside any demonstrations of gratitude on the part of people. According to the commander, he had done nothing else anyone in his position would, and thanking him for doing his job was redundant. In this way at least, they could give the captain the thanks he deserved in a way he could not refuse to accept.

High above, a lone figure watched the reunion. Her long time advisor joined her. "Who is the little girl, Coran?"

"The Captain's daughter, Princess."

Allura felt her heart shatter at the news.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

She had recently celebrated her fourth birthday. They had invited the children from the nearby orphanage. They had pony rides, games, and a picnic. Nanny had even bent so far as to bake a cake for the occasion decorated with balloons. Magda had taken the motherless girl under her wing. For Cady's birthday, she had sewn a miniature version of Allura's pink gown. The look on Cady's face had made every minute spent on the dress worth it. She had thrown herself at Nanny in a rare display of exuberance and then demanded to change into the dress immediately. As far as Cady had been concerned, her birthday was complete.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cady twirled around in her new dress. She a dress just like the pretty princess. The princess played games with her when her Daddy could not, and she flew the blue lion, and wore pretty dresses and was really nice. Cady actually lived in a castle with a _real_ princess. None of her other friends on Earth could say the same thing. They lived in boring houses or apartments. They wore boring clothes. All in all, Cady was happy living in the castle. She had her Daddy and three of her Uncles, and now Lura. Daddy needed to marry the princess so they could live forever and ever in the castle. Cept Daddy was really funny about Lura. He never called her Lura like her uncles. He always said Princess. Cady twirled some more until she fell down, dizzy. Immediately her Daddy picked her up in his arms. She loved being in her Daddy's arms best. He just smelled like her Daddy. She loved her uncles, but Daddy was best. She snuggled right into his arms, tired. She liked her birthday, but Daddy had promised her a special present. He said he and Black would take her for a ride. She looked up at her Daddy. "Can we ride with Black, now? I have been really good."

He Daddy pretended to think about it. Then he said, "I don't know, you do not looked dressed quite right. Hmmm." Then he looked at Uncle Lance. "Lance, where is that last present for Cady?"

Uncle Lance pulled one more bag from behind the couch, "Right, here Cap."

Her Daddy put her down and she ran over to Uncle Lance. Opening the bag, she found a uniform just like her Daddy's with a helmet! "All mine?" she asked.

Her Daddy nodded, "All yours. If you put it on, Black will take us for a ride."

Promptly she turned to Uncle Lance, "Dress off, Uncle Lance."

The rest of the adults in the room started laughing. Cady looked around in confusion, not knowing what she said that was so funny. Uncle Lance's face looked bright red. "Sure Cady."

Lance helped Cady put on her uniform and she ran to lift her hands up to her Daddy. "Ready, Daddy!"

"Cadet Kogane, there are a few rules." Her Daddy said in his work voice.

"Yes, sir, Daddy, sir." She responded.

"First, you must sit buckled in my lap at all times. Understood?"

Cady nodded.

"Second, when I say quiet, you. . ."

"Be quiet!" she replied. Standard question, standard answer.

"Third, we will have. . ."

"FUN!" The best part! Daddy and her were going in Black. This was the best birthday ever!

_Sidebar: I actually use a variation of these rules with my own children. Regardless of the activity, the final rule in our house is that we must have FUN!_

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Keith strode out the door with his daughter in his arms, heading to her promised ride in Black lion. She had only been on Arus such a short time, and Keith could not comprehend how he had survived four months without her presence. She gave him reason to fight and more, reason to return. Giving her a ride in Black in return was such a small thing and easily done. He felt blessed that the five of them had managed to raise a child so unaware of material things. On Arus especially, things were hard to come by. Some of the other children he had known on Earth because of pre-school and day care for Cady as she grew older, would not have done well on Arus. Cady had been able to bring some of her toys from Earth, but only what the weight allowance would allow. At such a short notice, it had not been much, but Keith suspected Coran had bribed or coerced GG into allowing Cady a little extra, her being such a small package herself and all.

_Because I think Coran receives too little credit. Plus, who would not want to reward a guy as fabulous as Keith?_

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Cady had a special place in the medical staff's heart. The bond between father and daughter became evident the very first time after her arrival Keith had been hurt and forced to stay in the hospital. He usually insisted on returning to his room so as not to worry Cady. Gorma had finally given the captain a choice; he either stayed as requested or would be sedated and would stay anyway. The captain conceded, but requested his daughter be allowed to join him. "The only time she has not slept in my room," he explained, "was when we first journeyed here from Earth and she stayed with my Uncle." The captain looked chagrined. "I do not think she has yet forgiven me."

The doctor laughed. "We can bring in a cot for her, Captain."

The pilot visibly relaxed and lay back against the bed. "Thank you, doctor."

A short while later, Hunk had brought in the young girl. She had the look of her father, with dark hair and skin tone, but with brilliantly green eyes. She looked tiny in Hunk's arms. "Dr. Gorma, this is Cady. Cady, this is Dr. Gorma, he is taking care of your daddy."

"Hi," was all the little girl said.

Hunk shrugged, "Cady would like to know if she can visit with her Dad."

"Of course. He is in _his_ room." Gorma smiled. Since the arrival of the team, one of the rooms had become known as Keith's. He spent more time than the rest of the team being patched up for one thing or another.

Nodding, Hunk turned and headed down the hallway. The medical wing had been the first place restored after the arrival of the force. When they entered, Keith was dozing courtesy of the pain medication given to him by Gorma. The good doctor had already learned that the captain did not rest unless forced to do so by outside means. Hunk came over to the bed and gently sat Cady down on the side away from where Keith had been injured. She leaned over and gave him a gentle kiss. His eyes opened and he turned to give her a smile. "Hello Cady-girl. How's my princess today?"

Cady snuggled herself into the crook of her Dad's arm. "Fine."

Hunk smiled as Cady wormed into her favorite position. "I'll be back in a while, Cap. Just want to go give Pidge a hand with Black."

Keith nodded, eyes half closed as he fought a battle with sleep. Hunk leaned to give Cady a kiss on her forehead. "Remember what we talked about, ok?"

Cady looked up at her uncle, "Yes, Uncle Hunk. I 'member."

On his way out the door, Hunk stopped by to let the nurse know Cady was in with her Daddy. The nurse stopped by to check on the pair and found Keith fast asleep with his daughter petting his face and singing very mixed up nursery rhymes. When she saw the nurse she put a finger to her lips. "Shh. Daddy is sleeping." Cady said in the exaggerated whisper of a child trying to be quiet. "Uncle Hunk said Daddy has a big hurt and needs lots of sleep."

"Do you want me to take you back to your Uncles?" the nurse asked.

"No," Cady replied, "Daddy always pets my face when I am scared or hurt and sings to me."

The nurse smiled, "He does? Sounds like a good Daddy to me."

Cady nodded and smiled. "He is the best Daddy. So I am making him better. I am going to pet his face, except he is prickly. So I have to pet carefully like a shark. And I am going to sing, just like Daddy." With that, she resumed stroking Keith's face and a very mixed up song about a goose who jumped over the moon while Mother Hubbard fetched a spoon.

The nurse left the two of them, but spread the tale of Cady making her Daddy better. Every one of them stopped by at some point in the afternoon. Cady just stayed by her Daddy singing and petting his cheek until she feel asleep with her head on his shoulder and her hand over his heart. At some point, Keith's hand raised to cover hers, and they both slept. A cot was brought to the room, and stayed empty.

When Keith roused enough, they shared his supper together in bed, though Cady ate most of it. Pidge came to help Cady ready herself for bed and let the nurses tend to changing the captain's dressing and attending to personal needs. By the time they finished, the commander looked drained, but was determined to not let Cady know. He also let them give him something for pain, which he rarely did. Proof enough for the nurses as to how much he hurt. Cady came skipping in with Pidge about an hour later. She had her favorite book in her arms. Pidge lifted her onto the bed without her asking. Keith raised the bed to a sitting position, and lifted his arm for Cady. She crawled onto his lap, and Pidge raised an eyebrow as his captain drew a sharp breath and his face paled.

"Cady, maybe you better sit beside your Daddy tonight. Remember, he hurt his chest." Pidge reached over to help lift her off of Keith's lap. It was her favorite way to read stories, but obviously the captain's body would not take it tonight.

Without grumbling, Cady opened the book and put in half on her lap and half on Keith's. Pidge notice Keith's hand shake slightly as he lifted the book into a reading position. He had intended on leaving, but instead sat down in the chair beside the bed. It was not as if he had not read this book a hundred times himself, after all. Pidge pulled out a data pad and started scrolling through a recent diagnostic of the castle's computer systems. In the background, he heard Keith start to read the tale about the clever fox who outwitted the farmer. After several minutes, he realized the cadence was not quite right. Pidge looked over to see Keith's eyes glazing over as he tried to keep awake to read to his daughter. Cady looked up at her Daddy, not quite understanding. Pidge reached over to pick up the book. "Your Daddy is a bit tired tonight, Cady, how about I finish up the story? Keith, just let go. You need the sleep. I can finish The Clever Fox."

"But. ." slurred Keith.

"No buts, Captain. Sleep."

Cady patted his cheek, "Sleep, Daddy."

Pidge lifted Cady onto his lap, and started reading. Keith drifted off to his daughters giggles and Uncle Pidge's baritone. When the story finished, Pidge lowered the bed into a reclining position, helped Cady climb into bed with her Dad, and carefully tucked her under the covers. Keith did not stir. Pidge gave Cady a kiss and turned out the light, leaving the best medicine for Keith sleepily snuggling against him.

The next time the commander was forced to stay the night, he found the bed in 'his' room to be a larger one. When he commented on the change, the nurse on duty just smiled and shrugged her shoulders. "With all the remodeling going on, this bed just did not fit into any of the other rooms."

It would be over a year before Keith learned the nursing staff was so impressed with Cady, they had a specially constructed bed brought in so she could stay with her Daddy if possible. There was always a cot in the room. After time, a princess could often be found staying in it cuddling with Cady when Keith's injuries prevented her from staying with him.

_It absolutely crushed me to not include this scene, but it just did not fit in the story. Darrell and Hunk became very dear to me over the course of this story. Hunk because of his relationship with Cady. Darrell because he _absolutely_ refused to take the role assigned to him. When I started writing, I did not realize what a hottie Darrel would become, or that he had a streak of the Ladies' Man. The temper also came as a surprise. Both characters grew in ways I did not anticipate but appreciated! Hope you liked them too!_

_Obviously, this came at a very early stage of the story, and actually I had written this BEFORE the scene at the academy and Cady's birth. Also before Darrell decided he could no longer stand the nickname of Pidge. This is also where aspects of Darrel's personality started showing through. I truly loved this scene, although it is rough and needs some serious work, I love the flow of it. _


End file.
